The Sword Maidens
by Daemon hunter
Summary: In a land divided by war, two women, one changed by the coldness of the north and the other burning with the fire of the south, unite in friendship. But how long would it take for them to learn where the path of friendship can lead?
1. Prologue: The Battle for Luo Yang

_The Sword Maidens_

_Summary:_ Diao Chan served her lord. Sun Shang Xiang served her father. When they meet on the battlefield the two forge a link that will take years for them to figure out. Watch them as they advance through life, searching for something they don't know they're looking for.

_Disclaimer:_ I don't own any of the characters in this story aside from a few original ones. I'm not sure who they actually belong to but it's not me. That's for sure.

_Author Notes:_ Just a few points before we start. This story is based on Dynasty Warriors but will, at places, follow Romance of the Three Kingdoms instead, particularly where officers are concerned. Also Sun Shang Xiang is older than she would've been historically.

Prologue – The Battle of Luo Yang

The pavilion stood outside the ruins of the battered Si Shui Gate, tall and proud in the early morning sunlight. Surrounding the massive tent was a camp that housed thousands upon thousands of soldiers. This was where the Grand Commander of the Han loyalists, Lord Yuan Shao had decided to stop, to allow his men to rest and to plan their next move.

Many heroes from across the land had risen to challenge the evil dictator Dong Zhou. Among them were Sun Jian and his daughter Sun Shang Xiang. She hurried alongside her father to the great pavilion where the Commander had called a meeting of officers.

"I don't see why _I _have to come," she said in a pouty voice as she hurried to meet her father's quick pace. "Why couldn't you have brought Huang Gai or Cheng Pu or someone?"

"You said you wanted to come to war," Sun Jian replied in a voice that suggested he'd had this conversation a million times before.

"Yeah, but not to the meetings."

"Look Shang Xiang," her father said sternly, stopping in his tracks and looking at his daughter. "I know you find it boring but if you want to be a great officer you need to pay attention to all aspects of war. That's why I'm bringing you. You need to learn these things."

"Fine, but I won't enjoy it."

"You're not supposed to," Jian replied as he started walking again.

The rest of the walk passed in silence. Within minutes they were standing in the shadow of the great tent. Other officers were going in (and out occasionally) showing that they weren't late. Shang Xiang didn't recognize most of them but just before they entered two figures she did recognize moved before them. One of them was Yuan Shu and the other his officer Ji Ling. Sun Shang instinctively looked to her father. Once again he had stopped dead in his tracks but this time he was staring at Yuan Shu with a glare something close to utter rage. Yuan Shu stared right back but with a blazing look of smug superiority.

Neither of the men said a word but it was obvious how much they disliked each other. Obviously memories of the battle at Si Shui gate hadn't been forgotten. Shang Xiang watched in nervous anticipation as she expected the men to draw swords. But Yuan Shu simply made a contemptuous noise and walked into the tent, Ji Ling silently following after him. It wasn't until he disappeared from sight that Sun Shang saw her father's fists unclench. He moved to hold open the tent flap (with a little more force than was necessary) and Sun Shang passed through.

The tent was quite dark, even with the illumination several flaming torches around the room provided. Many men were sitting on grass mats on the floor, all looking in the same direction. Sun Shang found herself effectively being dragged to the far end of the tent closer to the commander. Unfortunately Yuan Shu was seated next to them so Shang Xiang sat between her father and Ji Ling. The commander seemed to be having quite an involving discussion with Cao Cao, whom he was sat next to. On his other side sat a strategist Sun Shang didn't know and behind him stood two bodyguards. Once the Suns had sat the strategist whispered something in Yuan Shao's ear. Everyone fell silent as Yuan Shao stood before the assembly of officers.

"Lords of the coalition," he began in a very loud, yet dignified voice, "we are now only a step away from accomplishing our aims."

At this everyone in the room cried, "Long live the emperor."

"But just because we've won here at Si Shui gate doesn't mean we should get ahead of ourselves," Yuan Shao continued. "We still have much to do. We must break the impregnable Hu Lao gate to defeat Dong Zhuo if we are to restore the Han back to its rightful position."

Again the officers of the assembly cheered but Shang Xiang was not among them. Instead she asked, "How are we supposed to breach the gate if it's impregnable?"

The effect of the words was instantaneous. The officers all fell silent and looked around to find who had asked the question. Yuan Shao himself seemed to have lost the thread of what he was saying temporarily but Cao Cao was staring directly at Sun Shang with an inquisitive look on his face. The attention she was receiving made her blush slightly.

"Who is she that speaks Lord Sun Jian?" Cao Cao asked.

Sun Shang opened her mouth to speak again but stopped when she saw the look her father gave her.

"She is my daughter, Sun Shang Xiang. Forgive her for speaking out of turn."

This time it was Yuan Shao that spoke.

"Forgiveness need not be given. The young lady raises an excellent question. I'll allow Tian Feng to explain the battle plan and how we shall breach the gate."

Yuan Shao sat down again as the strategist who had been sitting beside him rose to address the congregation.

"There are three roads that lead to Hu Lao gate," he said, pointing to a large map behind him. "Each one is guarded by a different general. Liu Bei and Gongsun Zan will take the north road, Sun Jian and Yuan Shu the east road and Cao Cao and Ma Teng the south. The forces shall meet at this point," here he pointed at the place where the three roads met, "and continue westwards to the gate. Here the gate will be bombarded by battering rams."

Murmurings went up across the tent at this proclamation and one of the officers Sun Shang didn't know asked, "How can rams take down a gate of this strength?"

"The rams have been specially built," Tian Feng replied. "They are larger and stronger than normal rams and have the strength to bring down the gate. Then we shall storm the city."

"Are there any objections to this plan?" Yuan Shao asked as he stood again, looking pointedly at Cao Cao in particular. Cao Cao simply shook his head and everyone else remained silent. "We leave tonight then, when the enemy's defenses will be more lax. Be aware generals that the gate may be defended by the mighty Lu Bu, who is said to have never lost a battle. Avoid him if possible. Good fortune in battle."

Everyone saluted, even Shang Xiang although she did it a few seconds after the others, and began to leave the tent in groups of two or three.

"You want to control that daughter of yours better Sun Jian," Yuan Shu said as he rose to leave, a sneer on his face. "You don't want people thinking you're of the lower classes, do you?"

This time Sun Shang spoke first.

"You might want to watch your mouth and think twice before you insult the Sun family again." Her voice had the intensity and temperature of ice. "Because we have the guts to actually do what we say we will," she ended with a pointed glance in Yuan Shu's direction.

Yuan Shu continued to sneer but said nothing in response, apparently lost for words. Instead he just stalked off. Turning to face her father she saw something quite unexpected. She had been expected him to be furious, or at the least, displeased. Instead he was affectionately smiling at her.

"I'm glad I decided to let you come with us after all," he said, ruffling her hair slightly (much to her annoyance). "With that sort of attitude Hu Lao gate will fall in no time."

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Meanwhile in the royal palace of Luo Yang, in a room on the highest floor two people were sat. One of them, the child emperor, sat upon the dragon throne silently and watched the second person intently. She was sitting below the dais on a small wooden stool and playing a zither with practiced ease. He applauded her as she finished her song, but unlike before, didn't ask her to play again. Instead he seemed to be lost in thought, more so than a child his age should be. She didn't fail to notice.

"Your majesty is something the matter?" she asked.

The child emperor seemed to come out of his reverie of thought and smiled slightly at the woman.

"Yes there is but there isn't anything you can do about it Diao Chan."

"But it may make you feel better if you voice your concerns sire," she said with a bow.

"You don't have to bow to me Diao Chan. How many times have I told you?"

Diao Chan graced him with a lovely smile of her own.

"It would be disrespectful not to do so your majesty. But that's beside the point. What is it that troubles you so?"

She didn't really need to ask the question. After all she already knew the answer and sure enough the two words she had been expecting tripped off the emperor's tongue.

"Dong Zhou," he replied. When Diao Chan seemed to take a caring attitude towards what he wanted to say he became more confident. "I worry about what will befall the people of the city during the battle. He doesn't care enough about them to evacuate them. I think that a massacre might result from the battle, no matter what the outcome."

"I'm sure it won't come to that your majesty," Diao Chan said. "We will defend Hu Lao gate with such intensity that the enemy won't set foot in the city."

"But you see Diao Chan I'm in a dilemma. I want Dong Zhou to lose but I fear what may happen if he does."

Diao Chan was spared from answering because at that moment one of the emperor's elite guards entered the room.

"Lord Dong Zhou requests your presence Lady Diao Chan," he announced.

"Why?"

"I don't know milady. The messenger simply said your presence is required in the great hall."

Diao Chan looked to the emperor who simply waved his hand in dismissal. She bowed once more and left the room.

The palace was great in terms of both size and grandeur. All of the corridors were lit by the sunshine seeping through the windows. Each of the corridors was carpeted and decorated with elaborate portraits and tapestries of important people or events from years gone by. Diao Chan, having come to the palace almost a year ago, knew the passageways so well it was as if a map was permanently impost on her brain. In no time at all she found herself outside the huge doors of the great hall. Both of them were already standing open and inviting her in.

Many officers were already seated at the long table that stood in the centre of the room. At one end of the table sat Dong Zhou. Li Ru sat to his left and the seat on his right was empty. Lu Bu stood behind him, halberd at his side, watching over the procession. His eyes wandered to Diao Chan's form as soon as she entered through the doors. Dong Zhuo noticed her too and immediately greeted her and gestured for her to sit in the empty chair beside him.

She sat down on the comfortable chair and looked around the table, quite keen to avoid the lecherous glances of Dong Zhou. Seated next to her was Zhang Liao. He wasn't looking at her or anything else for that mater. Instead he sat, arms folded across his chest, staring at the table as if there was something incredibly interesting there that only he could see. Since she was rather fond of Zhang Liao, having come from the same region as him, she took it on herself to greet him.

"Good afternoon Zhang Liao."

He sat up straight immediately upon hearing her voice and turned to look at her.

"Good afternoon to you Lady Diao Chan," he responded with an odd sense of formality.

"You don't have to be so formal with me Liao," she reprimanded. "We've known each other since we were children."

"Yes, I suppose. But you assuredly don't want me to call you what I used to as children in the royal palace," he said with a smile reminiscent of the emperor's.

Diao Chan responded with an unladylike giggle and a comment of, "I wouldn't mind", but before they could speak further Dong Zhuo called the meeting to attention.

Since Diao Chan was a dancer first and an officer second she found the meeting to be quite uninteresting. While she made a convincing semblance of listening avidly she was really not paying the slightest bit of attention. However she was brought to her senses when Zhang Liao nudged her in the side lightly with his elbow.

"Sorry?" she said as if she'd just woken up from a most wonderful dream.

Dong Zhou, Lu Bu and most of the congregation were staring at her, some in confusion, others with amusement.

"Are you alright Diao Chan?" Lu Bu asked, looking concerned about her. The result of which appeared quite unusual since normally the only emotion Lu Bu wore on his sleeve was anger or a lust for battle.

"I'm fine. Just a little ill, that's all."

Her lie appeared to be quite effective since most of the officers turned their attentions back to Dong Zhou. He himself repeated what he had just said.

"You will be stationed outside the inner gate in case Hu Lao falls."

Diao Chan said nothing for a moment as she struggled to cope with her surprise. Finally, with what she hoped was a look of puzzlement she managed to ask, "Why will I be stationed outside the gate?"

"I've seen you and your lady guards train. I think you'll be able to hold of the enemy should they somehow breach the gate and defeat Lu Bu."

Behind him, Lu Bu snorted in an amused sort of way.

"If they should somehow _get past_ Lu Bu," Dong Zhou corrected himself.

"Very well," she said. "If I might go and assemble my guards?"

"Of course," Dong Zhou cried, oddly jubilant. However the same could not be said for Lu Bu. Before she left she managed to sneak a glance at him. It was obvious to anyone looking his way that he wasn't happy about her being on the battlefield, but he said nothing. Adjusting the bow around her waist so it sat more firmly Diao Chan again left the hall and went off towards the emperor's room.

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The cloudless night would have been a fine one if it hadn't been for the sounds of a battlefield that rent the air asunder. The battle for the Han, as observed from both sides, was clearly swinging in favour of the allies. Diao Chan stood on the city walls and watched in silence as steel met unforgiving steel or vulnerable flesh. Seeing the situation she descended to the city and silently singled for her bodyguards to follow her.

Sun Shang Xiang meanwhile watched from a distance as the rams began to pulverise the gate. All around her were the bodies of the unfortunate soldiers serving Dong Zhou that had come across her and her bodyguard unit. They waited in complete silence as the battle continued to rage around the field, accompanied by the frequent thudding of the rams against the gate. Fortunately the people on the rams were quite safe because apparently no-one had had the foresight to put archers on the walls.

Soon enough a loud crunching sound could be heard and Shang Xiang observed the last parts of the gate fall over and the first soldiers charge in. She herself yelled an order to her bodyguards and ran forwards towards the fallen gate.

She was so excited that she didn't hear someone yell, "It's Lu Bu", before being permanently silenced.

So Shang Xiang ran on, her bodyguards constantly close behind, directly into the path of Lu Bu. She immediately felt a sense of terror consume her as he looked directly at her from a distance not too far away. He brought his horse to a trot, slaying several more soldiers as he passed them, making a beeline for her.

"Lady Sun. What are you doing? Run!" yelled one of her bodyguards.

As much as would have wanted to she couldn't bring herself to move. His unflinching stare had rendered her effectively paralyzed by terror.

That might well have been the end of her story right there had it not been for Gongsun Zan.

Before she was even aware of it he had galloped right past her with his drawn sword held firmly in his right hand right for Lu Bu. Lu Bu himself was so shocked to see someone charging _towards_ him rather than away from him that for a moment he simply stared at the man in disbelief. Gongsun Zan took the opportunity to yell the same thing as her bodyguard before beginning the duel.

The action taken, rather than the words spoken, by Gongsun Zan seemed to restart her systems again. Shaking her head as if she had simply been daydreaming she ran past the duelling men and went further into the camp, killing as she went.

It was then that she noticed the woman standing outside the gates which led into the inner city. She immediately stood out like a lotus blossom in a patch of thorns. Her pink robes and gentle features suggested that she had wandered on to the battlefield completely by accident. However the determined look she wore and the maces and bodyguards she had with her suggested she had a purpose there after all.

Looking around Shang Xiang realised that she and her bodyguards were the only people from the forces of the coalition in the vicinity, a fact which the other woman hadn't failed to notice either.

The robed woman stepped forward, dismissing several of the bodyguards who had also moved with a wave of her hand, and stopped so closely that Shang Xiang could make out even the faintest details on the woman's beautiful face.

"Please you must yield," were the words of greeting that she gave Shang Xiang. The woman, despite her determination, didn't seem to want to fight.

"Why should I yield?" Shang Xiang replied indignant. "I'm Sun Shang Xiang, the daughter of the proud Tiger of Jiang Dong. The honour of my family won't allow me to yield to someone the likes of you," and she raised her chakrams so they were plainly ready to be fought with.

The woman however appeared to be unfazed by either the comment or her weapons.

"Who are you anyway?" Shang Xiang asked when the woman made no move.

"I am Diao Chan," she responded simply.

"Look Diao Chan," Shang Xiang said in the friendliest voice she could muster. "I don't want to hurt you and I know you don't want to fight, so why don't you just let me pass?"

"You're right." For a moment Shang Xiang thought she had succeeded as Diao Chan turned her back on her. However she simply went to her nearest two bodyguards and handed them her maces. In return she took both their swords and turned around again. "I may not want to fight," she continued, "but I won't just run away because a pampered princess from the southlands asked me too."

Diao Chan favoured her with a sarcastic smile (which Shang Xiang couldn't help but admire) as she attempted to respond.

"What?" she finally managed to say.

"Are you hard of hearing as well?" Diao Chan taunted. Raising both her swords in a threatening stance she gave another sarcastic smile. "Perhaps you need your ears unblocking with my swords. Or is it just that your daddy stopped anyone from saying what they truly thought of you back home?"

"Better a pampered princess than a whore of the palace," Shang Xiang shot back.

"Is that the best you can come up with? I see your blades normally do the talking for you. They're probably more articulate."

Shang Xiang, momentarily struck dumb by Diao Chan's insults, quickly recovered. Rather than retort she simply charged towards the other woman who had yet to move. Their weapons met and rang sharply through the night as they struck and parried at each other with a terrifying ease. Shang Xiang realised she had been wrong to think of her opponent as a harmless, delicate little thing. While she looked it, in reality she was almost as fierce as Lu Bu.

Shang Xiang struck at Diao Chan with both her chakrams but missed as Diao Chan simply dodged nimbly to the side. Exposed on her left, Diao Chan pressed her advantage. The first of her swords was blocked but Shang Xiang missed the second, resulting in a sharp pain going through her bare upper arm. Looking down for the briefest of moments she saw blood pouring from a small, shallow wound. Ignoring it they looked weapons again and threw all her effort into breaking the deadlock. Succeeding Shang Xiang swiped at her opponents head with one of her weapons. Diao Chan only just managed to duck in time. The only injury she suffered was a few severed strands of her obsidian hair.

Shang Xiang was so caught up in her battle frenzy that she only just managed to jump over the sword that took a flying slash at her legs. Landing gracefully she slashed at the crouching form of Diao Chan but was blocked by both of her swords, raised in a cross shape.

"You're good dancing girl," Shang Xiang said, the strain of holding yet another deadlock showing clearly through her voice.

"Surprisingly so are you," Diao Chan said, with just as much strain in her voice and in her arms. Both of the girls were sweating from the exertion and with a final burst of strength Diao Chan once again won the deadlock. Standing a few paces apart they regarded each other's exhausted forms, looking for weak spots in the others defence. Behind her Shang Xiang heard a horn blowing in the distance. Turning around cavalry from the coalition were riding towards her, Sun Jian and Huang Gai at the head of them. Turning around again she saw Diao Chan give a fearful look towards the cavalry while taking tentative steps backwards.

"Diao Chan."

Shang Xiang and Diao Chan simultaneously looked up to the top of the walls. There stood one of the enemy generals, Li Jue, and surrounding him were a couple of archers.

"New orders," he yelled down to her. "Get back in the city."

Behind her the gates opened as soon as he'd finished. Diao Chan turned to look at Shang Xiang one last time with a respectful glance.

"Let us meet again princess warrior," she said as she and her bodyguards turned to flee through the gate.

"I'm sure we will Diao Chan," Shang Xiang yelled towards her retreating form. "I'm sure we will."


	2. Part 1: Capture at Xia Pi

Part 1 – The Age of Warlords

Chapter 1 – Capture at Xia Pi

Things were getting grave for Lu Bu's forces. They'd stood a siege in Xia Pi city for seven days from the combined forces of Cao Cao and Liu Bei and the men's morale was plummeting fast. Only the night before the rivers outside the city had been diverted to flood the entire city. Everywhere people and soldiers had to go about their business while sloshing through muddy water two feet deep. Small children had to be carried everywhere and disease looked likely to make its presence known.

Diao Chan looked on the depressing scene from her window high up in the castle. Even from her height she knew there wasn't a smiling face to be found in the city. Everywhere there was grumbling against Lu Bu and no matter how many people he had punished for it, she knew he was only adding oil to the flames. But she didn't dare tell him that. No-one did anymore. There was no-one willing to risk a flogging just to offer advice that would probably be ignored anyway.

Not able to bare the mind numbing boredom of simply waiting anymore, Diao Chan took her maces from beside the door and left the room with the vague thought of going to the city walls. She smiled a false smile at every person she passed, trying her hardest to keep the morale up, even if she was literally fighting a losing battle.

In the castle courtyard the elite guards stood to attention in pairs ready to fight to the death at a moment's notice. They all saluted to Diao Chan as she came to them. The captain of the guard, a man who went by the name Guan Xi, met her eyes before bowing.

"What's happening?" she asked.

"My lady can I be frank with you?"

Diao Chan nodded. She could've guessed what he would say would be bad. The captain stroked his bearded chin fretfully.

"There's nothing to be done staying here. In battle we stand little chance of winning because of all the men we lost in the initial encounters. The people of the city follow Liu Bei, not Lu Bu, and will rise against us at a moment's notice, should the enemy ask. We should sally and flee to Yuan Shao or Sun Jian."

Her reply was interrupted before she even opened her mouth. "Diao Chan, what do you think you're doing?" asked the harsh, brusque voice from behind her.

Turning she found the giant form of her liege lord and lover Lu Bu staring at her angrily.

"I was-"

A resounding smack that knocked her to the floor by surprise stopped Diao Chan from answering. With tears of pain in her eyes she hauled herself up and stood as tall as she was able while wiping her tears away on a sleeve. The guards who stood behind Lu Bu looked mutinous for the slightest moment before they noticed her look their way. Most of them only felt loyalty to Diao Chan nowadays since she was a universally more popular figure than Lu Bu. Lu Bu looked from her to the captain of the guards.

"And you were just going to let her in the city were you?"

"No, my lord, I assure you I didn't mean Lady Diao Chan to leave the castle."

Lu Bu grunted and turned back to Diao Chan again. Without saying a word he lifted her over his shoulder as easily as if she was a rag doll despite how much she struggled, her maces now lying forgotten on the floor.

"You two," Lu Bu pointed randomly to a pair of nearby guards, "pick up her weapons and follow me."

Without a moment's hesitation Lu Bu walked back into the castle with Diao Chan no longer attempting to struggle. Behind him one of the guards offered her one of her maces by the handle but she silently shook her head. Even if he was rough with her Chan simply knew it was his way of coping sometimes. Besides without the mighty Lu Bu they'd be dead in the water.

Chan blushed slightly when she realized that all those passing in the opposite direction had a perfect view of her rear. But her embarrassment was unfounded. The furious look on Lu Bu's face made most of them try to evade his attentions as much as possible. All but two shied away from Lu Bu altogether.

"Lu Bu, what are you doing?"

Diao Chan tried to look over her shoulder to see the speaker. She knew it was Zhang Liao since he was the only one in the castle aside from her who was allowed to address him so informally.

"What does it look like?"

"Quite frankly, my lord," a second voice she recognized as belonging to the chief strategist Chen Gong said, "it looks like you are abducting Lady Diao Chan."

"Hold your tongue."

"Pardon me, my lord." Even though she couldn't see his expression Diao Chan knew his voice was oozing with sarcasm, but not a little fear. "May I speak with you, my lord?" he added in a more serious tone.

Diao Chan let out a small scream as Lu Bu swung her around so she was resting like a baby in his arms. A moment later he gently set her on her feet.

"Very well. Zhang Liao, take her to her chambers. She doesn't leave, understand."

For the first time in her memory Liao looked afraid, even if only his eyes betrayed it.

"Understood."

Chen Gong spared her a piteous glance before walking off in the opposite direction with the man who loved her. Diao Chan turned her head to the side while she and Liao walked back to her chambers to stop him seeing the violent red mark she could feel throbbing on her cheek. Once they came to her chambers on the highest floor Liao gave the guards orders to stand outside the door before accompanying her inside.

Diao Chan wearily started to go to the chair that stood beside her bed but Zhang Liao grabbed her wrist, stopping her from going more than two paces.

"Look at me Chan," he said.

When she didn't but kept her back to him he delicately twirled her around so they were staring at each other face to face.

"Did he hurt you?"

"No, it's nothing."

Liao let go of her wrist but neither of them moved. Diao Chan watched as Zhang Liao looked at her in a rather odd, yet protective manner. She knew that she looked up to him as an elder brother, even loved him as one, but the concern he held for her seemed something more than that. Or maybe it was Chan's imagination being overactive.

Sighing over some unvoiced thought Liao broke eye contact and moved away to Diao Chan's balcony. A few seconds later she followed suit and leaned on the white stone banister.

From her balcony they could see everything. Down below the sight and sounds of those men who had enough lustre to train could be spotted among the servants and chamberlains who went about whatever business they had. Of all the places in the city only the castle remained flood water free. In the city itself the streets were mostly quiet with the sounds of children playing, the general hustle and bustle of the marketplace, the sounds of thousands of people and dozens of horses having disappeared, all replaced by a steady uneasy silence. Further off the city walls remained standing and heavily guarded, men frequently patrolling them just to give them something to do in the boredom and depression. Further still Diao Chan could make out a great mass of tents with small blue and green people moving about among them. In all directions enemy cavalry were circling the city walls just out of bow range. The sight always sapped at her morale since deep down she knew there was little chance of victory, Lu Bu or no Lu Bu.

Sighing she looked to her side at Zhang Liao who was still staring at the distant enemy forces. Inside her she had a question that burned to be answered and he was the only one who could give her an answer she could trust.

"Liao, what's going to happen to us?"

"I don't know," he replied honestly. "Cao Cao is ruthless but Liu Bei is a virtuous man. Whatever happens to us who fight they'll spare you."

"What do you mean? I'm going to the battlefield too."

Liao stared at her and Chan knew that she'd irritated him with her comment.

"I agree with Lu Bu on this one. You're staying here."

"But Liao…"

"It's bad enough you've been on a battlefield at all. But unlike Dong Zhou, Lu Bu has enough honour to keep you out of the battle. No arguments."

"Liao, try to stay alive out there, alright?"

He laughed under his breath but assured her that he'd do his best.

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That night Guan Xi and two or three others were on guard duty at the outer gate. Although they sat and talked companionably around a small fire razed on the stone column upon which a statue had once stood, all of them feared that which only that stone wall separated them from. Judging from the position of the moon Xi guessed it was about midnight and his watch would be over in just two hours.

None of the four looked up when they heard the patrol sloshing through the water towards them, having seen then pass four or five times before. It was a few moments before Xi realized something.

'The patrol isn't due for another twenty minutes.'

Turning around he saw a group of peasants approaching them, all of them armed with whatever weapons they could get their hands on. With a cry to arms he drew his sword as the peasants charged to them, all stealth abandoned. The other three weren't so quick to react. Two of them feel over clutching wounds from thrown knives. The other stood back to back with Xi as the peasants surrounded them.

"Drop your weapons and open the gates," one of the peasants, the biggest and strongest of the men wielding a crude sword, demanded.

The other guard turned around to ask for orders.

"Do it. They'll open the gate anyway."

They dropped their swords so they were submerged in the murky water and lost to sight. With a small group of peasants they took the wooden barricade from its place that held the gate firmly shut. Then they pulled the heavy wooden gate wide open.

"You four," the peasant leader said, pointing at the relevant people, "ambush and kill passing wall guards. The rest of you build a fire."

Guan Xi and the other guard were led by knife point up to the top of the wall and watched as the peasants piled chunks of firewood together, finally setting it alight. He watched as the flames danced higher and higher into the sky and heard the telltale sound of charging men and galloping horses.

'It's over,' Guan Xi thought before the peasants behind the two guards stabbed them over and over again, even as they lay unmoving in a pool of their mingled blood.

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Diao Chan awoke immediately when the city made more noise than it had all day. Throwing open the doors to the balcony she looked out to see parts of the city burning while the enemy charged through the city. Down below she could see the elite bodyguards and those soldiers who could be assembled in the confusion standing to attention behind the castle gate. Mounted on his famous horse Lu Bu sat at the head of them. Whatever he said to them spurred them on since they cheered in a determined sort of way. Without a second thought she put on her light shoes, picked up her maces and ran to the door. However no matter how hard she pulled the door refused to open.

"Damn you Liao," she cursed aloud as she kicked the door which now trapped her in her room.

She tried the door one last time before running back to the balcony. The allies had already begun to batter the gate and were being fired at by the archers Lu Bu had assembled on the wall. More archers were standing at the front of the assembled soldiers, ready to fire should the enemy breach the gate. Inevitably Diao Chan heard the wood crunch and the gates collapse. The archers at the front sent their arrows at the first wave, causing men to fall clutching their new wounds in agony, before they charged with Lu Bu at the head of them.

Unable to look on anymore Diao Chan moved to sit down on her bed. The anxieties that could've only been dispelled on the battlefield overwhelmed her and she began to weep for Lu Bu and Zhang Liao, the men who meant more to her than anyone else. The noises of battle kept up for ten minutes more before they were replaced by the screams of the servants.

"So they're in the castle," she said to herself, aware nut unafraid of the only fate that could befall her now.

Diao Chan sat patiently on her bed, staring at her mahogany doors for the moment they would open. In time she heard running footsteps coming down the hall and the sounds of sword against sword. She forgot that two guards were still posted outside her door and inwardly she felt honoured that they'd be ready to fight and die for her in this hopeless situation. Her feelings of gratitude were the only reward she could give. She guessed that they had been overwhelmed the moment those on the other side started trying to kick the door down. Standing and dropping into a fighting stance with her maces the door fell down and a group of soldiers came in. Before they could react she was among them, swinging left and right to any part of the body she could reach. Two soldiers went down before the leader of the group hit her over the head with his sword hilt knocking her to the ground unconscious.

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The next morning Cao Cao raised his banner over the castle in victory and sat in the lord's chair in the great hall. To his left Liu Bei sat on a small stool, having earned his position there, and Xiahou Dun stood behind him as a bodyguard. Kneeling before the conqueror were the officers who had served Lu Bu, bound and captured and awaiting their fate. Diao Chan had awoken in the middle of the night to find herself in her room under armed guard. At first light she had been dragged here by the guards. Upon entering the hall Chan sighed in relief when she saw that Lu Bu and Zhang Liao remained alive. Cao Cao looked at her in confusion and then to her guards.

"Why have you brought the wench?" he demanded. Lu Bu growled in anger but wisely said nothing.

"She was armed and one of Lu Bu's officers, my lord."

Cao Cao waved his hand in dismissal and she was forced to her knees beside Chen Gong.

"Let's start with this one," Cao Cao said, pointing to Gao Shun, another of Lu Bu's officers. The guards brought him forwards with difficulty and never once did he drop his look of contempt for Cao Cao.

"Will you beg for you life?" Cao Cao asked.

Gao Shun said nothing. Silently Diao Chan willed him to beg.

"A stubborn one I see. Alright take him away and execute him."

It took four of the guards to take Gao Shun away. Despite his struggles Diao Chan knew it was all defiance. Gao Shun wasn't afraid of death. Next the guards brought Chen Gong forward.

"My old friend," Cao Cao greeted him in a friendly way. "Guards, unbind him."

They did so and Chen Gong stood unsteadily, rubbing his wrists where the ropes had cut into them. Like Gao Shun he showed no fear.

"Why don't you come to serve me Chen Gong like you once did?"

"With all due respect Lord Cao Cao, I would rather suffer an honourable execution."

Cao Cao failed to conceal his surprise at his friend's choice of words. Rising from the chair he descended from the dais and put a hand companionably on Chen Gong's shoulder. They stared each other down, both trying to force the other to their point of view.

"Please my friend, reconsider."

Chen Gong simply shook his head steadfastly.

"If it's what you want."

"It is."

Cao Cao turned his back on the assembled prisoners and rested his head wearily in one of his hands. Although he could order an execution easily, with a man he respected greatly as not only an equal but a friend, it was obviously harder to do.

"Do it," he said quietly.

Chen Gong walked out of the chamber with a guard on either side of him. Diao Chan watched how calm he looked and wondered where the strategist found such bravery. Having sat back in the chair and assuming his normal composure Cao Cao looked over his last three prisoners.

"You are Zhang Liao are you not?"

"I am."

"Tell me why I shouldn't put you to death with your fellow officers."

Zhang Liao just stared at Cao Cao who grew steadily more impatient.

"Liao, say something," Diao Chan pleaded.

"I'd rather be put to death than plead for my life from such a petty man." Whether he said it to her or to Cao Cao, Diao Chan wasn't sure. But whoever he spoke to the result was the same.

Cao Cao rose from the chair again but this time his eyes flashed with rage rather than with friendliness. Without a second thought Cao Cao drew his sword from its scabbard. Raising it to the sky he aimed a furious strike at Liao's head.

"NO!" Chan screamed.

The sword stroke never came though it wasn't because of Diao Chan's scream. A hand had clasped around Cao Cao's wrist just as he prepared to bring the sword down. The hand belonged to Liu Bei who had risen so quickly no-one noticed him do it.

"Don't my lord," Liu Bei pleaded as he struggled to hold back Cao Cao's rage. "It's dishonourable to kill a bound man."

Cao Cao glanced once more at Zhang Liao and put his sword back into its sheath. Diao Chan let out a breath she'd been holding and made a note to herself to somehow repay Liu Bei for what he did for Liao. She was startled out of her thoughts by Cao Cao. He had begun to laugh as if something amused him that no else understood. Liu Bei remained standing, not sure what to think at all.

"I like you Zhang Liao," Cao Cao said at last. "I won't kill you but I sense you won't serve me either. Take him back to his chambers for now under armed guard. I'll speak more with you later."

Liao said nothing but spared a glance at Diao Chan. She smiled at him. If she was going to die then she wanted him to remember her smiling.

"Well, well, look at this," Cao Cao said gloatingly, still standing. "The mighty Lu Bu kneeling at my feet like a dog. I've waited for this day for such a long time."

Diao Chan was wrong if she expected Lu Bu to be furious at the insult. Instead he considered Cao Cao with a shrewdness she'd never seen before.

"Why don't you let me serve you Lord Cao Cao? Together we can conquer this land."

Beside Cao Cao Liu Bei scoffed.

"I'm sure you said the same thing to Dong Zhuo when you killed your previous master."

Lu Bu made to stand and get to Liu Bei, shouting furious insults at him as he did. The only thing that came of it was Cao Cao's drawn sword. Without a second thought he swung. Lu Bu's yells were cut short instantly as his head rolled from his shoulders. Diao Chan screamed as the body of her lover fell to the ground. His blood still flowing through his arteries some of it splattered on Diao Chan's robes, mixing the red with the pink. But she didn't care. Sobbing she shuffled forwards as best she could while still bound to cry on his body.

"Remove the body," Cao Cao called. "His blood will stain the carpet if it isn't cleaned quickly."

"You bastard," Diao Chan muttered through gritted teeth. "You fucking heartless bastard."

"What of the lady?" Liu Bei asked, crouching beside her. "I can't let you kill her."

"I had no intention. You fought well yesterday. You have her."

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_My thanks go to Sydney Clock for reviewing the last chapter._


	3. Sorrow and Injury

(_Author notes:_ And here we have the next chapter. Not much to say really but there's a note on the chronology of this story you should know about. You can find it in my profile.)

Chapter 2 – Sorrow and Injury

All the pent up frustration she'd been feeling for so long was steadily being rid of with every swing of her weapons. Since her first taste of battle in Luo Yang she had long since desired to fight once more. The battlefield was where she was most comfortable and where she had trained to live from a young age.

A swing of one of Sun Shang Xiang's chakrams brought another of her enemies to his death. With as much ease as a fish through water she ducked a clumsy sword stroke aimed at her head and brought down the last of her assailants with a quick slash to his midriff. Behind her, those soldiers that her father had reluctantly assigned to her for the battle cheered her on, having finished their own skirmishes too.

Smiling at her soldiers Shang Xiang absentmindedly wiped her chakrams clean of blood and other nasty things on the grass before leading them on to the south wall of Xiang Yang city. But as she led her men towards it Shang Xiang saw something interesting out of the corner of her eye that made her stop. To her left her father Sun Jian and one of Liu Biao's vassals she knew only by sight were exchanging insults that were drowned out by the sounds of battle around her. Her father drew the ancestral sword of Wu from its sheath but before he could fight the enemy vassal turned and fled in the direction of Xiang Yang. With a terrifying battle cry Jian chased after him.

For a reason that escaped her Shang Xiang had a bad feeling about the chase.

"My lady?"

Shang Xiang turned to see her second-in-command, a man who went by the name of Ding Feng, staring at her in confusion. Grimly she smiled at him. Although young he already had the makings of a great officer. Maybe now was the time to give him the opportunity to shine.

"Take control of the unit and take the wall. I'm going after father."

Before he could protest Shang Xiang had mounted the precious horse she'd dismounted before going into combat to spare the beast injury. Getting her feet securely in the stirrups she urged her horse into a trot before she broke out into a gallop, leaving her unit behind her. Although she was a few minutes behind her father there was only one way that he could've gone judging by the confused trails of numerous hoof prints. Every now and again she'd see another small skirmish between men of Wu and Jing, but each time she promptly ignored them.

After riding for just a few moments past the last such battle the sound of another rider galloping after her made her dread losing track of her father if she was forced to fight. But turning around in the saddle Shang Xiang saw with a sigh of relief that it was one of her allies. His name was Cheng Pu, one of her father's most trusted vassals.

"Lady Sun where are you going?" he asked once he brought his horse level to hers.

"After father. He might be in trouble."

Cheng Pu muttered a curse under his breath and unsurprisingly kept riding beside her. Soon enough they found Sun Jian. His horse lay upon the ground with its legs sticking out at odd angles. Three arrows stuck in its side and the beast was unmistakably dead. The rider himself leaned over the body of his steed clutching an arrow that had pierced his chest. His bronze breastplate was already beginning to stain red with the blood that seeped out of the open wound. Not fifty metres away twenty archers were preparing to fire another volley of arrows. The world seemed to slow down around Shang Xiang as her father looked up and saw her. She saw fierce pride intermingled with genuine fear in his eyes but what it was he feared she couldn't tell.

Desperately Shang Xiang urged her horse forward to save him but the archers fired. She felt a sharp pain both in her side and in her right arm and fell out of the saddle, oblivious to her father's cries of anguish.

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Why was the world so bright? Every which way she turned all she could find was blinding whiteness that forced her to squint. Sometimes she tried to move but her limbs felt numb and far too heavy to lift. Every now and again she thought she heard a voice call out from not too far away but when she looked there was no-one there.

She wondered if she was going to die here.

Using the last reserves of her strength she at last managed to sit up but some unseen force pushed her back down onto her back once more. Uttermost frustration flowed through her veins, keeping her alert, not to mention conscious.

For a moment the whiteness flickered and with it came another voice, this one closer than the rest.

"Shang Xiang?"

She knew that was her name but that was all. The name of the man who spoke to her eluded her each time just when she thought it was in her grasp. The effort of remaining awake took up most of her willpower and prevented her from thinking clearly.

The whiteness flickered again and this time, rather than a voice, she saw a scene. A dying man. A lone rider. Arrows flying through the air. Screams, pain, nothingness.

Unable to continue on Shang Xiang submitted to the darkness of her mind.

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The ancestral home of the Sun family in the great southern city of Jian Ye was utterly silent. People who passed by saw the grounds were still with the occasional servant passing by slowly in a mood as black as the clothes they wore. Many of them wept openly in the palace. People who saw them felt sorrow gnaw at them too. The taverns had been closed as a sign of respect, the musicians had stopped playing and the dancers had stopped dancing. All over the city a great depression swept over everything so even the sunlight appeared to be darker than usual.

Inside the mansion the only truly active men were the loyal officers who served the Sun family, attending every day to see how their lord and his daughter fared and each day the news became worse. The medics held a secret meeting with Sun Ce, Sun Jian's eldest son, and senior officers of the Sun family. The situation was grave. Despite their best efforts Sun Jian had lost much of his blood and the arrow wounds had become infected despite their best efforts. Lady Sun had been more fortunate in that her wounds hadn't become infected but instead she had contracted a severe fever. When asked, the medics answered honestly about their chances of survival.

Sun Jian was now beyond the medical help they could provide and only a master of the art such as Hua Tao could save his life. But the word was Hua Tao was in Xi Liang, hundreds of miles away, and aiding its citizens who were suffering from a bout of plague. Even if a message could be got to him Sun Jian would be dead before he arrived. Shang Xiang was an unusual case. They didn't know what had prompted the fever and the only one who could save her now was her. The medics could only make sure she didn't die from some other unforeseen factor.

On the fifth day after the Sun's had returned home from their ill fated expedition to Xiang Yang Sun Ce and his younger brother Sun Quan sat in the room where their father and sister were kept together. Every now and again Shang Xiang would squirm and make noises that betrayed the pain and discomfort that racked her body before going as still as a statue once more. Their father never moved once.

All of a sudden Sun Ce rose out of his chair and swept over to the window which looked into the empty courtyard. Unshed tears brimmed at his eyes but he wouldn't let them flow, if only for his younger brother's sake. He didn't notice at first that Quan had also risen from his chair but instead of going to the window he went to his sister. Placing a hand on her forehead he was concerned by how hot she was, her face covered by a mask of perspiration. Dutifully he gently wiped her face with a towel the medics had left for that purpose.

"I can't do it," Ce finally said from his place by the window, his voice cracking from the strain of emotion. "I won't bury my father and my sister together."

Calmly Quan simply replied, "You may have to."

Ce turned around in surprise. Even though he was only fourteen years old Quan already looked worldly wise and prepared for any situation.

"Soon you will lead the family Ce. You need to be strong for everyone. If you aren't strong for Shang Xiang you may as well give up hope for her."

"You're right."

They spent the rest of the day in the room in utter silence and as the night passed they remained. Near midnight one of the lesser medics entered the room and assessed the pair. Shang Xiang's fever was worse but he told them he had expected that and the fever needed to get worse before it got better. As for Sun Jian he declared he wouldn't live to see the dawn.

That night the medic's prediction rang true and Sun Jian succumbed to his wounds. The entire household wept when they heard the news and the next morning the heralds proclaimed the news to the townsfolk. The people recognized Sun Ce as the new prefect, despite his young age, but as concerned as he was for his sister he refused to leave her side for a moment, choosing to ignore his new ministerial duties for the time being.

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Several days later, as the civil officers prepared a funeral fit for the emperor himself, silently they wondered if another would soon follow, never voicing the thought for fear of it coming true. Although the family medics had announced she was improving the fact of the matter was that Shang Xiang still hadn't awoken. Many people doubted the medic's word.

However Yin Mei, a woman who was known widely as the best medic in all of Jiang Dong, and also widely believed to be a sorceress, wasn't to be doubted. As she tended to her patient (ever under the scrupulous eyes of Sun Ce and Sun Quan) she happily discovered that Shang Xiang's fever had broken and she was at a normal temperature again. Moreover, while her wounds hadn't healed, they had closed and showed no signs of infection. There was no doubt that she would live and the old medic assured the brothers that she should wake at any time. Temporarily forgetting their grief, Ce and Quan jumped from their chairs and embraced each other in relief and sheer happiness. As quiet as a ghost, Yin Mei slipped out of the bedchamber not wanting to disturb the private moment.

The next day as she left the room that had been provided for her in the manor, Yin Mei noticed a change in the people of the Sun family's home. The attendants and guards of the high ranking family all appeared… different somehow. It took her a moment to realize what it was she saw in all their faces.

She saw hope there.

She passed through the corridors mostly unnoticed and found herself outside her patient's door. As usual she entered the room without knocking. Ce and Quan were already in the room but their chairs were closer to the bed then they had been previously. Within moments she guessed why. Although still lying down Sun Shang Xiang's eyes had finally opened. Rubbing her murky brown eyes in tiredness Mei found that nothing had changed except that all three of the Sun's were now looking at her.

"So my patient finally awakens," she said as she moved to the side of the bed. Without hesitation Sun Ce stood and offered the medic his chair, a respectful gesture to her age. Shang Xiang also tried to sit up in bed but winced as she did so.

"Don't rise," Mei warned. "Your body hasn't healed fully yet. Movement will still be difficult for a few days."

Humbly, but scowling at the thought of bed rest, Shang Xiang lay down again.

"Good. Make sure my lady doesn't get out of bed for at least three days." As she stood to check on her patient's dressings she added in an undertone to Sun Ce, "And it would be prudent for her health to keep her from the battlefield in future."

Speechless Ce merely nodded.

"I'll announce the good news to the household and send heralds out into the city," Quan said, ruffling his elder sister's hair before leaving the room.

Yin Mei carefully untied the bandages that shielded the wounds on Shang Xiang's side and arm to inspect her wounds. The wounds left ugly marks that marred her skin but otherwise everything appeared to be satisfactory. The wounds were healing nicely. Mei dressed Shang Xiang in new clean bandages while disposing of the old ones before proclaiming her work finished.

"If I may go I have other patients in the city who need attending."

Shang Xiang thanked her for saving her life and Ce followed her out into the corridor.

"You will try to keep her from battle again won't you my lord?" Mei asked as they slowly ambled down the passage.

"I'll try, but she has a fiery personality. She'll probably disobey me and go into battle anyway."

"I'm no advisor and it isn't my place to say, lord, but perhaps you should consider giving her a bodyguard if you can't stop her."

"Yeah," he replied, already running through a list of possible candidates. "Before you go, for your services I'd like to give you an official position and a title. If Shen Yi had treated her we'd probably have two funerals to conduct."

Yin Mei smiled at the compliment. Shen Yi was the official healer of the Sun family and, despite how arrogant it sounded she knew her medical skills far surpassed his, even if they weren't the best in the land.

"You'd make a witch a lady?" she asked.

Sun Ce stopped in his tracks and looked it her in a way that showed he was carefully considering his next choice of words.

"I know what they say about me," she went on. "With all due respect my lord I'm afraid I have to turn down your offer. My skills belong to everyone, not just those of the Sun family. I have neither interest in lands nor in titles either but thank you for offering. Should you ever need my services, my lord, don't hesitate to call on me again."

"I will, and thank you."

At the gates, in a reversal of roles, Ce bowed to the old healer and watched as she disappeared into the city with her medical supplies.

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Soon enough Sun Ce and Sun Quan returned to Shang Xiang's temporary quarters to find her stubbornly sitting against the wall. Even as pain shot through her side she smiled at her brothers, her face a mask that only wore a smile. Through the open window she could hear people bustling about the grounds and off in the distance people yelling something indecipherable. It was as if the city had awoken in time with her.

Ce and Quan settled on either side of her bed, both taking one of Shang Xiang's dainty hands in both of their own. Although happy to see her brothers she noticed both her mother and her father were missing. When she asked where they were the two younger men both looked profoundly uncomfortable. Finally Quan answered her question,

"Mother is mourning."

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Five days later the city was back in its black mood again. In the mansion Sun Jian's body, dressed in ceremonial robes under a suit of bronze armour, was placed in his coffin. His hair was hidden beneath a silver helm and in his hand he held his second sword, the ancestral sword now belonging to Sun Ce. Shang Xiang placed his ceremonial shield at his feet.

Then finally Huang Gai, Cheng Pu, Han Dang and Zhu Zhi entered the great hall where the important people of the city could pay their respects. The lid of the coffin was closed and the four officers lifted the coffin from the ceremonial table laid in the middle of the room. Sun Ce and his mother led the precession out of the hall, the coffin bearers following. Shang Xiang, dressed in traditional black robes of mourning came after with Sun Quan beside her. Next came the important men who served the Sun family who weren't on pressing business elsewhere, the officials dressed in their finest robes and the officers armed and suited in their best armour. After them came the servants of the household.

The city was deathly quiet. Passing through the gates of the mansion the funeral procession passed down the main roads where the townsfolk stood to both sides behind the garrison of Jian Ye, all armed with swords and standing straight. As the coffin passed everyone, soldier and peasant alike bowed respectfully. The only sounds made, beside those of the precession, was the sobs of those people unable to restrain their emotions. As she passed Shang Xiang saw two women dapping at their eyes with their sleeves. Secretly Shang Xiang wondered if something was wrong with her. Since she first heard the news of her father's death Shang Xiang hadn't shed a single tear but her mother and brothers, the officers and even townsfolk he'd never met wept for Sun Jian.

At the city gates yet more people were assembled. Among them were the nobility of the region, all on their knees and bowing before the coffin. Although these men and women had the right to see their lord's body before the funeral, they were only allowed to accompany the procession at the city gates, and even then only if the leader allowed it. The dowager of the Sun family, although not the leader, raised her hand to call a halt. Once stopped she moved forward and the most important of the nobles kissed the ring on her finger from her husband and humbly asked to accompany their lord like a beggar would ask for scraps of food. Bidding them to rise she allowed them to follow behind the officers, but before the servants, which would've otherwise caused them great insult.

Again the procession moved and left the city through the north gate. Their destination soon appeared since it wasn't far from the city. Cut into the side of a large hill a large gateway with iron bound wooden doors led into the mountain itself. The doors were open and outside them stood the keeper of the mausoleums, called Li Men, and beside him stood Yin Mei, accorded the honour for being the one to try and treat Sun Jian. For her labourious attempts Sun Ce had allowed her to inter the coffin since none within the family felt able.

After bowing to the lords and ladies of Jiang Dong, Li Men and Yin Mei led the way into the gateway. From here the nobles and the servants had to wait outside, only allowed to bow before the tomb of their former leader after the family and the officers. Beyond the gates lay an underground stone tunnel, wide enough for ten men to walk side by side, and riddled with lit torch brackets. On either side the closed tombs of men (and several women) of esteem rested for all eternity, their names carved into the stone so they might never be forgotten. Other illustrious members of the Sun family had also been buried here in previous generations.

To Shang Xiang the walk seemed to last for hours without the sun to guide their barren way as they passed by tomb after tomb. All the way she kept her eyes on the coffin carried by the four doughtiest and most valiant officers who served her father. She cursed herself often for not having reacted sooner on the battlefield.

'If I'd just gone a minute earlier…'

She shivered for the briefest moment from another thought that entered her mind, rather than the unnatural coolness of the crypt. Had the arrows that pierced her hit her elsewhere it might have been her in that coffin, or in an identical one. They would've been father and daughter, united in life, inseparable in death.

'Inseparable in death…'

And for the first time tears leaked down her cheeks because she finally realized the significance of her father's death. She wept and sobbed and didn't care who saw her. Quan brought her closer to him and held her as she wept into his shoulder. Her scalp began to feel damp after a few moments and she realized her younger brother was crying into her hair.

Once the two had better control over themselves they turned and watched as the four knights of Sun Jian laid his body in the tomb. Yin Mei spoke in a clear, echoing voice, having begun the interment while the siblings grieved.

"…a great man who was benevolent to his people, generous to his followers and loving to his family. Although his body may be broken and battered Lord Sun Jian shall ascend to heaven's gate and be granted a throne befitting a king. May his days be blessed and may he protect us, his subjects, from heaven as he did upon earth. And so we offer our lord's body to the ground and may it rest undisturbed for all eternity."

With a resonating bang the stone was slid across the opening in the earth and Sun Jian's coffin passed out of sight for the final time. On the slab of stone were printed the words; "Sun Jian, Prefect of Jiang Dong, Lord of men, Master of Heaven."

The journey away from her father's body seemed shorter to Shang Xiang, even though she walked the same distance. To Shang Xiang's left her mother walked beside her and Sun Ce walked on her right while Sun Quan walked on their mother's other side. As they came out into the sunlight once more she hoped she wouldn't have to set foot in that crypt ever again.

Little did she know she would return much too soon.


	4. Longing for Freedom

Chapter 3 – Longing for Freedom

The day after the executions had been dealt out in Xia Pi Cao Cao reassembled his army and prepared to march the majority of it away. Although he had been reinstated as the prefect of Xu province once more, Liu Bei also departed with the army since his presence was desired in Xu Chang.

That afternoon the army marched out of the city to cheers by the townsfolk. Their love for Liu Bei shone clear as day and all were glad he had returned to his position again. The soldiers remaining behind, along with many city folk busied themselves with draining the streets of water, the rivers having already been returned to their previous courses.

The army marched throughout the day. Cao Cao sat upon his mount at the head of the line with his most honoured officers, Liu Bei among them. This was also where Diao Chan marched. Mounted on a horse with hands bound to the saddle and feet tied to the stirrups, she hardly said anything on the journey even when threatened with a beating by the more impulsive of Cao Cao's officers. Every time either Liu Bei or Cao Cao would intervene. Although they spared her bruises she resented the pair of them.

Diao Chan still grieved Lu Bu but she hadn't shed any tears since the previous day. With the pride of a warrior she staunchly refused to allow them to see any weakness. Her face was a carefully arranged mask of impartiality that nothing could penetrate. She had perfected it during her time serving Dong Zhuo. Despite her hatred for the man he had never once guessed it due to her skill. Now the skill was coming in handy once again, even if the reason was merely a matter of pride.

But her mind raged at Cao Cao the entire day's journey. She mentally screamed at him, insulted him, and contemplated assassination attempts. For her love Diao Chan would avenge Lu Bu's murder. The thoughts weren't organized, mostly revolving around the moment of death. He'd be on his knees, looking up to her and silently begging for mercy. Every time she smirked and kicked him to the ground, leaving him to bleed to death in a pool of his own blood.

Although she held a certain animosity for Liu Bei too it wasn't actually the man she hated. Rather it was the fact that she now belonged to him as a commodity. Only two nights before Diao Chan had been a free woman, one of the highest ranking in the empire in fact, and now she was reduced to a status lower than that of the lowliest servant. It injured her pride severely to think that he could defile her as he wished.

Much to her annoyance Diao Chan actually had something to be grateful to him for. Although he had baited Lu Bu to the point of death Liu Bei hadn't been the one to actually deliver the fatal blow. In fact he had saved Zhang Liao's life and even if she was no longer a free woman she was happy that her childhood friend had escaped a similar fate of slavery or death. Liu Bei was also responsible for saving her life too, having placed his own fate on the line by protecting her. What made Diao Chan's blood boil the most was the fact that she felt indebted to repay him for these deeds. But as his concubine there was only one way she could do so. She blanched at the thought, momentarily dropping her mask before rearranging it again carefully. No-one noticed her, and even if they did, no-one seemed to care.

"We'll camp outside Xiao Pei tonight," Cao Cao announced to his officers. "Who will stay outside the city with the army?"

'Please let Liu Bei,' Diao Chan thought.

Sure enough Liu Bei and Xiahou Dun both offered to stay with the army. Xiahou Dun was to be given the command in the event of battle while Liu Bei would second him. However the chances were unlikely that there would be a night attack.

Silently Diao Chan sighed with relief.

'At least I'm not Liu Bei's plaything for one more night.'

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Diao Chan was given a chamber to herself in Xiao Pei castle. A small and plain room befitting a small and plain castle there was nothing at all extraordinary about it. However it had a bed and it was private and for the time being that was good enough for Diao Chan. She whiled away most of the night in her chamber, ignoring any who knocked on her door. On one occasion Liu Bei's sworn brother Guan Yu simply barged in and brought her a meal. Although she was tempted to simply knock it out his hands Chan was smart enough to know that she had to keep her strength up. If she was ever going to escape it wouldn't do to starve herself to death in the process.

As she ate he stood respectfully by the door silently standing as though she needed guarding. In a way she probably did. Diao Chan pointedly ignored him throughout the meal.

"What is your name?" Guan Yu asked once she'd finished off the remains of food on the pewter dish.

"Diao Chan." She looked up to find him seemingly contemplating some unspoken thing. "What are you doing here anyway?" she asked, adding with a touch of distain, "Shouldn't you be with your perfect brother?"

"He asked Zhang Fei and I to ensure your safety. So did Zhang Liao."

Guan Yu noticed her perk up upon mentioning his name and moved a hand inside his green tunic. Without thinking Chan took the gesture to be an offensive one, temporarily forgetting what she'd just been told, and tensed up. But instead of a dagger or some other type of lethal implement he withdrew a letter. Curious she asked who it was from. Instead of answering he merely handed her the letter before leaving the chamber.

Breaking the red waxy seal on the back she unfolded the letter.

_Dearest Diao Chan,_

_I've only just heard about what has become of you. I never would've imagined that Cao Cao would do something such as this to you. Last night I accepted his request of service once I knew Lu Bu was dead. He only told me afterwards about you. It pains me that he might do this to you._

_Unfortunately I'm sorry to say that I have no position to bargain with to secure your release. Cao Cao, although adamant that he was a master worth serving, doesn't yet trust me and isn't inclined to permit me any favours just yet. However the man I asked to deliver this letter is a friend of mine or rather we've become acquainted on the battlefield and respect one another. He is an honourable man and I know he will do his best to make sure nothing particularly bad happens to you. I know that's not enough for you since you have the pride of a high born lady. I'm so sorry I can't do anything to help. _

_I don't think Liu Bei, for all his virtue, will want to give you up and I know that pains you more than anything else. You want to escape, I know, but for gods sake stay where you are. Soon enough Liu Bei and Cao Cao will part. You should try to escape then when the guard is lax. But whatever you do, don't try to escape tonight or you'll only make your situation far worse._

_I can't say anymore right now but it is likely we won't see each other again. In that case, and I know how inappropriate it is to tell you this at such a time, there is something you should know. Diao Chan, I love you. I understand you still love Lu Bu and can't return my affection. But I needed to tell you while the chance remained to do so. I hope you don't think any less of me for it._

_I assure you Diao Chan I'll do what I can to secure your release._

_Yours forever,_

_Zhang Liao_

Tears threatened to spill from her eyes as Diao Chan finished reading the letter. The letter dropped from her loose grip and fell to the floor as a sense of numbness stole over her. In the letter Zhang Liao had voiced the concern that she hadn't allowed herself to think of. She might well never see him again. And the thought pained her more than any physical blow she'd ever received in the heat of battle.

She didn't begrudge Liao for serving Cao Cao since the decision probably saved his life. Although Cao Cao wasn't the first lord on her shortlist of 'best lords to serve' at least he was gracious to his vassals, unless they did something particularly traitorous.

But the news that Liao actually loved her didn't seem to come as much of a shock to Chan. On some deeply subconscious level she had already known but deeper still she knew that she could never return that love. No she'd had her fill of lovers who went away to war and won their fame and glory from its ravages. Eventually that glory would blind them and they would be buried in some far away land never to return home. Lu Bu had been like that to his cost. Diao Chan didn't think she could put herself through that again.

But on a lesser scale she had no time for love. As it stood Diao Chan's mind was occupied with thoughts of escape. Every door or open window she saw was a potential escape route. Every horse or carriage she saw was a tool to aid her get away. She would debate with herself which road to take and where to go. What disguise might she use? Would she stay in the shadows or walk among crowds? All these considerations overwhelmed her to the extent that she thought of nothing else.

She also reasoned with herself that slaves had no right to love. But there was no escaping the fact that even if she was a free woman of high rank once more she just couldn't return his affections.

For the rest of the evening the fact she'd probably never see Zhang Liao again ate away at her inside and she finally wept into her pillow.

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At midnight Diao Chan observed the guard shift change and came up with an idea. With all the hustle and bustle no-one in the castle would notice a woman passing silently down the corridors. Still fully dressed she went to her door and pressed an ear to the mahogany woodwork. After a short wait she heard two guards make their way down the corridor. As they passed she pushed the door open slightly. It creaked but the heavy footfalls of the guards masked the sound. Opening the door wide enough to slip through Diao Chan carefully closed the door behind her. She noted with some surprise that no guards had been posted outside her door. Liu Bei was clearly either very trusting or very arrogant. Tucking the thought away for later she followed the guards at a safe distance, hiding behind loosely woven tapestries or curtains masking high windows as she went. But the precaution was unnecessary since the guards never looked back once.

She followed them into the foyer of the castle where they continued onwards to the guardsman's barracks in a part of the castle set aside for their especial use. Diao Chan instead slipped up the red carpeted stairs and turned left. Although she wasn't sure where she was going, Chan had seen Cao Cao and his entourage (Zhang Liao included) pass this way before she was shunted off to her lowly room.

But beyond that the corridor provided no more clues as to which direction to go next or which room she was looking for. Diao Chan continued down the corridor to look for any indication but was disappointed to find he could be in any one of about fifty rooms. Realizing defeat she made her way back down the corridor cautiously, keeping close to the walls and looking around corners before she turned them.

But disaster struck as she was half way down the stairs. Taking hurried steps, off in the distance she could hear someone bid another good night. Chan panicked upon hearing the voice and went to run back up the stairs. But as she turned she lost her balance and gracelessly fell down the stairs. Groaning in pain, but thankfully conscious and with no broken bones, Diao Chan began to push herself up before a shadow descended over her. Only then did she realize just how much noise she had made. Looking up she saw in the moonlight the man standing over her was the last one she wanted to meet.

It was Liu Bei's other sworn brother Zhang Fei.

Grinning at her in a way she didn't understand Diao Chan began to fear the look he gave her and tried to back away.

"Well, well, well trying to assassinate Lord Cao Cao were you?" he asked mockingly. He set her up on her feet again rather roughly and as dignified as she could Chan smoothed down her robes.

"What's it to you? You don't even like him."

"So? Can't have brother's prize going off getting herself executed now can I?"

With that being said he grabbed Diao Chan by the upper arm and dragged her back to her chambers effortlessly despite the struggle she put up. All the way Diao Chan cursed herself for her stupidity in falling down the stairs. But at least she hadn't been injured.

When they returned to her chamber Zhang Fei opened the door before brusquely shoving Diao Chan in. He closed the door behind him and Chan heard a key turn in the lock. With the turn of that key her hopes of escape began to be dashed. Now they'd guard her wherever she went. Exceedingly annoyed with herself she stripped off her robes, replacing them with her night attire, and blew out the candles providing light. She watched the tall plants against her window sway in the wind outside before falling into a dreamless sleep.

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The army marched on again as the mid-day sun rose in the sky. Once more Diao Chan was towards the front of the line and so overheard conversations held between the officers. None of them particularly interested her but Chan listened anyway, not having anything better to do.

It didn't pass her by that Zhang Liao had been assigned to the rear guard to keep them from seeing the other. It simply made her hate Cao Cao all the more. She whiled away the days of the march in boredom with nothing distinctive to discern one day from the next. On the sixth day of marching, just as the walls of Xu Chang finally came across into sight on the horizon, Diao Chan noticed something just ahead of her that piqued her interest.

Liu Bei, with Guan Yu and Zhang Fei on either side of him, seemed to be holding a heated argument with his brothers. All of them made hand gestures to emphasize their points but what they might be she couldn't hear. They continued to argue for several minutes until Liu Bei chanced a glance at her and ended the argument. The rest of the journey passed quietly and none of the three brothers said a word to the other.

A mile from the city the army came across a small group of people assembled on horseback around an ornate carriage which appeared to be waiting for them. Soon enough Diao Chan made out that at the head of the group was the prefect of Xu Chang, Xun Yu. The strategist rode up to Cao Cao's side and greeted him and the triumphant armies. The carriage itself bore the imperial insignia. The window of the carriage was wide open and through it the familiar face, shrouded slightly by his imperial headdress, of the emperor could be seen.

The young emperor looked over the assembled officers with an impassive expression which only just managed to mask a listless lack of interest. He was most interested however when Liu Bei was brought to his attention and invited him and his brothers to an audience the next day. But once the three brothers had passed by the carriage the Emperor merely greeted the officers out of politeness. That was until Diao Chan came by.

His eyes immediately shone with recognition and through the beads of his headdress Diao Chan could see the bright smile he bestowed her with. Surprisingly the emperor ignored the principles of royal dignity and stepped out of his carriage. Chan remained mounted only because her hands were still tied to the saddle and her feet to the stirrups.

Cao Cao quickly made a show of dismounting too and assumed his place by the emperor Xian's side. Sharply he noted the smile that had quickly descended into a frown.

"Does something displease his majesty?"

"Yes. Why do you bind Diao Chan with cords?"

Cao Cao had the good grace to look shocked by the rebuke from the normally mild mannered ruler. Of course Chan knew that the main reason for the surprise was the fact that the emperor knew who she was.

"She is a prisoner your majesty."

"Kindly have your men unbind her."

Cao's eyes wandered over Chan's bound hands and feet and stopped on sight of her face. The only emotion Diao Chan wore on her sleeve as far as Cao Cao was concerned was simple hatred, something he picked up on. But regardless he ordered two of his guards to do as the emperor ordered and soon Chan had dismounted and made a low bow to the emperor.

The emperor took her hands within his own and smiled at her again. "It has been long since I last heard one of your songs and despite what I say you still bow to me."

Chan was lost for words that the emperor Xian had remembered her after all that time ever since she fled the capital two years before with only Lu Bu and a few faithful men.

"Come. Sit with me in my carriage," the emperor said. Only once he had did Chan managed to bring her wits about her again.

"I can't do that your majesty. It's dis-"

"-disrespectful I know," Xian interrupted. "But I hold you in high regard and wish to talk with you a while. Please don't refuse."

Diao Chan simply consented with a nod. Cao Cao looked about ready to protest but after a moment he simply turned and remounted his horse, continuing on while chatting with his officers. For the first time Chan was able to see her relationship with the emperor as beyond master and servant. She finally understood they were friends, bound together in suffering under the despotic prime minister. Without a second thought Chan allowed the emperor to re-enter the carriage first before following in after him.

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The emperor had been most saddened to hear of Diao Chan's change in status and had resolved to secure her release during his audience with Liu Bei. In the meantime he had ordered she be given a room in the palace that was fit for a consort. The room was as large as it was well furnished, everything made out of the finest materials and decorated with some of the finest jade ornaments in the empire. The floor length mirror that stood beside the window was protected by a well wrought frame that looked to be made of purest gold. Diao Chan stood in front of the mirror and stared into the eyes of her reflection.

While she wasn't as vain a person as some of the women she'd met in her life Chan had always tried her best to look her best. But the sight that greeted her in the mirror wasn't very appealing. Her hair was dishevelled and greasy from not being washed for almost a week and the hairpins that held the ornate style in place seemed to be fighting a losing battle. Her robes were stained by the muddy water that she had been required to walk through to reach the other side of a fordable stream and her face seemed to be a shade or two darker thanks to the dust of the road that had settled there.

The servants had filled the stone basin besides this mirror with warm water and so Diao Chan attempted to improve the way she looked. She took the hairpins out and let her obsidian hair fall to her shoulders and set about cleaning it a little bit at a time with the soap and water. Once she was reasonably satisfied she dipped her face in the water before withdrawing again while wiping away the dirt and grime from the road and lack of self grooming. Chan was pleased with the change but trying to clean the robes was something of a lost cause. Fortunately the emperor had provided her with a wardrobe filled with robes to replace them.

After considering the choices Chan removed a finely embroidered set of blue silken robes that seemed to fit comfortably on her lithe frame. Her choice proved to be a good one since they fitted just as well as her old pink robes. She looked at the old robes which she had laid out on the bed sadly for a few moments. She'd forsaken the feminine shade (even though there had been several other robes of the same colour in the wardrobe) and chosen something different for a reason.

It was a new start and with the change of colour she hoped for a turn about in her future.

While regarding her new appearance in the mirror Chan was startled by a knock at the door.

"Come in," she called.

It happened to be Liu Bei who was on the other side. The plates of armour that were still girded on scraped against each other with a distinctive metallic sound as he moved to enter the room.

"You look… nice," Liu Bei said, trying to get in her good books by complimenting her.

Unfortunately he failed miserably and was greeted only with a look of perpetual irritation.

"What do you want?" she asked brusquely. She wasn't in the mood to skirt around the issue and certainly not with her new 'master'.

But before he could answer there was another knock at the door. Unlike Liu Bei the person on the other side didn't wait for an answer and simply entered anyway. Zhang Fei filled the doorframe with his presence and looked from Diao Chan to his sworn brother.

"So trying to have all the fun, are you brother?" he asked cynically. Chan was incredibly confused by what he said and was even more so when she saw the look of irritation that Liu Bei wore at sight of his younger brother.

"It's no concern of yours. Why don't you go and find something to do? The palace is large enough after all."

"Trying to get rid of me? And I thought as brothers we shared everything together."

It was then that Diao Chan began to slowly understand the rudiments of what the three had been arguing about some days before on the march to Xu Chang. They'd been arguing about her. Just then came a third knock on the door and to make matters worse it was Guan Yu who entered after Zhang Fei opened the door.

As time went by and the three brothers argued louder Diao Chan listened to them argue about who 'owned' her. Liu Bei adamantly stuck to the story that Cao Cao had given Chan to him and him alone. Zhang Fei however seemed to believe that she'd been bestowed upon the three of them. For the most part Guan Yu stayed out of the argument but when he spoke he seemed to be in support of Zhang Fei.

Diao Chan for the most part began to tune out the argument. Only the sound of a sword being withdrawn from its sheath brought her attention back. Zhang Fei had taken one of the swords at Liu Bei's side and was holding it menacingly.

"Let us settle this then," he yelled.

But rather than strike at one of his brothers Chan was surprised to see him turn and approach her instead.

"What on earth do you think you're doing?" she asked, her voice not missing a note. She had stood and took a step backwards for every step he made forwards.

"You're too much of a threat to our brotherhood so I'll settle this in the fairest way possible."

He sped up and she matched it until finally her back hit the wall. Not knowing what else to do she closed her eyes tightly.

The last thing she saw was the sword poised in front of her, ready to skewer her.

_Author Note:_ My thanks to everyone who's reviewed this so far. I hope this will be enough to keep you happy.


	5. A Poisoned Chalice

Chapter 4 – A Poisoned Chalice

Sometimes when she was in a particularly dangerous situation and knew she was beaten Sun Shang Xiang would calm herself and think as rationally as possible (sometimes a difficult thing given her impulsive nature) about how to escape. She was in danger at that moment but of a different variety then what she encountered at Luo Yang or Xiang Yang. Shang Xiang was in severe danger of being bored to death.

The officers assembled in the conference room of the Sun family palace all argued their cases passionately but their words simply failed to sink in. Being the sort to think that a war is conducted on an open field of battle by warriors rather than in chambers miles from the action by strategists Shang Xiang wasn't ecstatic about the debate going on. Why on god's green earth did her brother call her to this meeting?

'Ah, of course.'

The thought brought a memory to her mind and a small smile to her lips. She remembered under the shadow of a great tent in a time that seemed an age away. Old words spoken by Shang Xiang's father sprang to mind when they had had an argument over a similar matter.

'If you want to be a great officer you must pay attention to all aspects of war. You aren't supposed to enjoy it.'

The words indeed rang true as she considered silently how anyone in their right mind might enjoy this. From the question stemmed dozens of answers. Shang Xiang would have laughed if she'd been able at the absurdity of some of the answers. She thanked the gods that they'd given her something more amusing to do even if it wasn't productive. At that moment she didn't care.

What the civil and the military officers were actually arguing about, if Shang Xiang had been paying attention, was the edict they had just received. Prime Minister Cao Cao had ordered her brother as if he were a sub-ordinate to mobilize his armies immediately to attack Yuan Shu, who had proclaimed himself Emperor. Thus the officers debated over their next course of action.

Ironically the civil officers argued that the time was opportune to crush the false emperor by obeying the edict. However the military officers disagreed, most of them against the prospect of responding to the prime minister. Sun Ce simply sat in his chair, his face impassive, and watched as his men argued amongst each other.

Unfortunately Shang Xiang's amusement didn't last as long as she'd hoped and soon found herself covering a particularly large yawn with the palm of her hand. Ce gave her a slight grin and stood before his men. All of them fell silent at once.

"I think you're boring my sister so let's make this short," he said, not at all as stern as his words appeared. Most of the officers in the assembly cracked smiles of their own. Shang Xiang covered her face with her hand and silently cursed her brother. "If I said _I_ wanted to go to war with Yuan Shu without this edict what would you say?"

The officers looked at each other in surprise at the question before Huang Gai answered for them.

"Then we'd follow you to the end," he said, the others giving encouraging nods to support his point.

"Well then," Ce answered, "let's have a compromise. We'll attack Yuan Shu of our own violation but at the same time appear to answer Cao Cao's demand. How's that sound?"

Shang Xiang looked around the hall into the faces of the officers. All of them seemed pleased by what Ce said and expressed it.

"Alright then, get yourselves ready for the battle and we'll march in a week's time."

The officers bowed and left the hall in a steady trickle, some going alone and others in groups, until only Shang Xiang remained with her brother. Once he realized it he looked her in the eye and simply said, "No."

She rose from her chair and moved to stand in front of Ce. Although she was smaller than him the look Shang Xiang gave him almost made him quail. "No? Why won't you let me go with you?"

He sighed as if the answer was the most obvious thing in the world. "In case you didn't notice you almost died last time you went into battle."

"_Almost_ died," Shang Xiang replied, prodding her brother in the chest with an irritated jab of her finger. "I'm still here aren't I?"

Sun Ce tried to sidestep Shang Xiang but she simply moved in front of him again, preventing him from leaving both the room and the conversation. Instead he simply grabbed his sister's shoulders as if to shake some sense into her.

"You're not going. You're staying here with Quan. End of argument."

With that being said he pushed past Shang Xiang and tried leaving the room. However Shang Xiang just followed him as persistently as a shadow. As they passed down the corridors she continued to argue her case, occasionally being rewarded with an exasperated glance from her brother or an mildly interested one from passer-bys. But despite her best arguments Ce still refused to let her join the expedition. With no choice left she played the ace up her sleeve.

"If you leave me here I'll only follow you. There's no point in forcing me to stay behind. And where do you think I'll be safer? Surrounded by an army on my side or surrounded by a big group of bandits?"

"Fine," Ce gave up, throwing his hands in the air as he did. "But you aren't going on the frontline. No arguments," he added just as she looked ready to protest. Once that was said Ce joined Zhou Yu, who happened to be going down the passage in the opposite direction, and left Shang Xiang alone in the corridor.

She smiled to herself. Already she was planning how best to disobey his orders.

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Two weeks later in the city of Ru Nan the newly crowned, yet false, emperor Yuan Shu stood atop one of the lookout points along the walls. With heightening disquiet off in the distance he could see the red clad armies of the Sun family approach. All was as he had feared. The taking of the dragon throne didn't look to be such a good idea after seeing all the enemies it had made him.

So he stood and watched as the enemy armies camped about a mile from the city walls and drew up their array. He didn't need to be a strategist to understand that whoever was in charge of organizing the army was doing an excellent job.

Unaware of doing it Yuan Shu sighed in despair.

"Why do you lose hope?" someone said behind him.

With a start Yuan Shu jumped and turned around to find he wasn't as alone as he thought he was. Standing with him was one of the new officers. He wasn't as tall as most fighting men nor was he as strong. However his lithe movements and shear determination made him a dangerous opponent on the battlefield. The only armour he wore was a steel helm which covered most of the upper part of his face, save the eyes, which were only visible due to two narrow slits. His name was Tan Fu.

"I haven't lost hope," Yuan replied snappily. "I just see that we are in a very difficult situation."

"No denying that. Why don't you allow me to fight a battle with them outside the city?"

"You'll lose," the false emperor replied. "They are far too strong to defeat. Better to wait in the city."

"I assure you that I will not lose to _them_," Tan Fu replied, sweeping his arm in a derogatory gesture towards the enemy.

Yuan Shu paused in consideration for a few moments before nodding his head.

"Find Ji Ling and tell him to lead our men out of the city. You can act as one of his sub-commanders."

"As you wish your highness," Tan replied with a bow before leaving the tower. Yuan Shu turned back to look at his enemy and smiled. Perhaps declaring himself emperor wasn't such a bad idea after all.

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The hilltop outside of the city proved to be an excellent point of vantage over the city of Ru Nan and it was on this hill that the Sun forces had made their main camp. Dawn's first light was just creeping up over the eastern horizon and the activity in the camp was more than could be expected for so early in the morning. The men were preparing for the battle that was to come.

Upon the very peak of the hill Sun Ce and Zhou Yu looked out over the land before them. Zhou Yu was rolling off facts about the benefits of the land around them and the places they should avoid for fear of ambush.

"Well I'll be sure to bare this in mind when I'm down there," Ce said, effectively silencing his sworn brother.

"What do you mean 'when you're down there'? You aren't going into battle."

"A good commander leads from the front."

"A wise commander lets his vassals go first. If you go down there it will make it much more difficult to give orders and make the job on our troops harder."

"Zhou Yu-"

With a wave of his hand Zhou Yu interrupted him. "Need I remind you what happened to your esteemed father when he led from the front?"

Ce had the good grace to look defeated in the argument before huffing out a brief "alright" before falling silent again.

"I shall lead the army," Yu told him, "and you can follow with the main body once the immediate danger is over."

Zhou Yu bid his friend and brother farewell and descended from the top of the hill down into the main camp again. Ce stood alone on the hill crest and watched as his army assembled itself before marching out. As his eyes wandered over the army, by the remotest of chances Ce saw the glint of a distinctive chakram as the sunlight fell on it.

"Not again," Ce muttered. He had only to think about it for a moment before he descended from the hilltop to gird on his armour. There was no way he'd be able to keep his promise to Zhou Yu if Shang Xiang couldn't keep hers.

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At first Shang Xiang had been amazed at the fact that an army could even be mustered to fight against them. Clearly Yuan Shu was far more cunning and resourceful than he appeared but it didn't change his standing in her eyes as a coward and an enemy of the Sun family. She wasn't necessarily sure who actually _was_ in command of the enemy army but whoever it was wasn't doing an overly bad job.

The armies had been spread across the field so that the field consisted of a group of skirmishes between small units to the sides while the main battle took place in the centre ground. Shang Xiang may have had bloodlust running through her veins, especially considering the animosity her dearly departed father had held for the man, but that didn't mean she wasn't still tactful. She had chosen to join one of the little battles on the right flank so as to avoid being spotted and dragged away by the higher-ups in her own army rather than the enemy's. There was also the possibility that if she won Shang Xiang might by some ruse be able to infiltrate the city. But she wasn't a strategist so that was unlikely.

The sounds of battle rang in her ears, the cries of pain, the clang of steel and the pounding of running feet against the hard ground. All of them combined as one to form a symphony no composer could ever hope to aspire to. And as a dancer Shang Xiang moved in time to the music.

It took the deaths of several of their colleagues for the enemy soldiers to realize that, though she was a woman, the daughter of Sun Jian was not a person to be trifled with. Before they had come one by one with their guard down and got caught on the sharp end of a chakram before falling to the ground. After that their tactics had changed. They rushed at her in a group of four or five and hoped to overpower her with sheer weight of numbers. It was a crude but nevertheless effective tactic. Or at least it appeared to be.

At first Shang Xiang simply blocked their numerous blows and quickly pretended to tire. Spurred on the soldiers continued their assault mercilessly and clumsily, more often than not leaving themselves open to attack. But she didn't pounce straight away. The perfect moment would come and she understood when it would. With a smile she spotted her opportunity. That same smile was still on her face when she wiped the sweat off her forehead with her forearm less than a minute later with all her antagonists at her feet unmoving.

It was then Shang Xiang noticed the person who appeared to be in command of the enemy forces. Judging by the quality of his armour and his sword alone she could tell he was obviously an officer and most likely a fabulously wealthy one. He didn't seem to notice the screams of pain his own men gave when they died under her weapons and if he had he didn't care. The officer, unlike her, wasn't actively taking part in the battle. Instead he walked up and down on the sidelines and only attacking when one of her men got a bit too close.

His attitude annoyed Shang Xiang immensely. If you were going to battle you went in wholeheartedly. Just by looking at him she felt as if that innermost principle was being threatened. Before she knew what she was doing Shang Xiang had yelled an insult and started running towards him but even then he didn't look her way. Her grip on her chakrams tightened and she yelled louder. The officer still didn't react. She prepared to swing her weapons at the men but only a few paces away he finally looked at her. With a smirk he aimed an upper stroke with his sword that swiftly sent her off balance and to the side.

'So he saw me all along,' Shang Xiang thought. 'Cunning bastard.'

As quickly as she could Shang Xiang regained her stance and prepared for the expected onslaught. But the strikes never came. The man stood straight, sword still unsheathed in his right hand and dotted with a spot of blood here and there, and simply looked at her, apparently deep in thought. But whatever it was he was considering was impossible to determine. His mouth remained set in a rigid line and his eyes could only just be made out through the slits in his battle helm.

Finally his contemplative gaze ended its analysis of her face and looked down to regard the weapons she held. Unlike him Shang Xiang hadn't even tried to wipe the blood that coated the weapons away. It took away from the overall terrifying awe that she hoped to inspire if she cleaned them. He raised his sword so it pointed skyward and maintained a firm two-handed grip on the hilt but made no other gesture. The man's apparent unwillingness to fight irritated Shang Xiang to no end.

"Make a move," she yelled in frustration.

He duly obliged. With another smirk he took a hand from his sword and used it to give her a rude gesture. Shang Xiang's sight was clouded with red.

She charged forward but unlike last time was prepared for the sword stroke that had the capacity to make her head part company from her shoulders. What she hadn't expected was that he'd be able to bring his sword around quickly enough to block her own strikes. Theirs was a duel of opposites. Shang Xiang was willing to throw all she had into a full frontal assault but her opponent's style was calmer and much more pragmatic. Both took their opportunities and both were capable of defending themselves against any sudden shift of favour.

Neither of the two talked or taunted for the words were now meaningless vessels. Only their weapons could deliver their show of skill and inherent desire to win. But even so Shang Xiang was a noisy fighter and tended to grunt and moan quite often depending on the circumstance. Her opponent was quieter but not above making the odd involuntary noise himself.

The soldiers in the immediate area now watched their commanding officers in awe and forgot about their own battles and wounds. None of them cheered since it threatened to take away from the sanctity that the duel unknowingly exuded.

Sparks flew from both their weapons and their eyes as the two opponents put their weapons into a deadlock. Shang Xiang was so close to her opponent she could make out an odd fleck of green in one of his brown eyes. There was something oddly familiar about those eyes but in the heat of the moment the thought was lost on Shang Xiang. She felt as if a dam had burst inside her which provided her with limitless energy. She pushed forwards again and her opponent lost his footing. In the momentary advantage she had gained Shang Xiang looped one of her chakrams over his sword and pulled it out of his grasp so that it landed ten feet behind her. Finally to add insult to injury she tripped the man up so he fell flat on his back before he could regain his balance.

Shang Xiang put one of her weapons to the man's neck but although the gesture was threatening she meant nothing by it. The man had impressed her and she thought it dishonourable to kill him now he was unarmed.

"What's your name?" she asked.

Whether he was frozen by fear or simply refused to say Shang Xiang couldn't tell. She pressed him twice more, each time putting the blade closer to his throat but still he refused to say.

"Well let's take this helmet off and we'll get a good look at you," she said after the third time.

One of her soldiers came up and took a hold of Shang Xiang's chakram while she used both hands to remove the helm. Surprisingly he didn't put up a resistance but that might have been because of the blade pressed to his throat. As it came away several strands of obsidian hair came loose from the tight bun it had been arranged in and fell to the sides of her face. That was what made Shang Xiang drop the helmet in surprise. The person was a face from her past, someone she had only met once but had always wanted to meet again. But most importantly it turned out that 'he' was actually a she.

"Diao Chan?" Shang Xiang asked in wonder.

"Mistress Sun Shang Xiang," Diao Chan replied. "If it's not too much trouble could you please lower your weapon?"

Despite the fact that only two minutes beforehand they had thought like rivals Shang Xiang was swift to comply with her request. She got back up to her feet and without thinking about it offered Diao Chan her hand. Diao Chan took it swiftly and silently. Once she was securely on her feet again Shang Xiang released the grip but both continued to stare at each other. She looked at the armour that Diao Chan wore and just how odd it looked now she knew who wore it. Shang Xiang opened her mouth to ask her about how she'd come to serve Yuan Shu but the words didn't come. Diao Chan didn't say a word either but after their silent staring contest had gone on for several more moments her gaze was drawn over Shang Xiang's shoulder. In turn she followed Diao Chan's gaze and felt the bottom drop out of her stomach.

Sun Ce, mounted on horseback and with a spear loosely held at his side, was only a few paces off. His face was contorted in a scowl and instinctively she knew that she was in for a scolding.

"I told you to stay in the camp Shang Xiang," he said, his voice a deadly low and one she had never heard him use before. "You could have been killed. You could have been…"

The expression on his face changed in an instant to one of bewilderment. Shang Xiang took a step forward as if to demand an explanation but only met a look on his face that spoke of utter agony. He fell forward in the saddle and only by her quick reaction did Sun Ce manage to stay in it. As he fell the reason became clearer as to why he'd suddenly stopped.

There were two arrows in his back pointing to the heavens.

Not too far away she could see the culprits behind the shooting dressed in the uniform of Yuan Shu's men. She only spared Diao Chan a glance that left the other woman rooted to the spot before she moved off to extract revenge.

000000

"The arrowheads were layered in a common toxin but the effect is deadly. It has already spread into his blood. I am sorry but there is nothing more that I can do for him without draining his blood, which would be dangerous since he is already incredibly weak. His only chance is to fight against the poison but…"

The voice of the medic had pounded the inside of Shang Xiang's skull for the last seven days. The way he had trailed off towards the end of his diagnosis had been meant to let her draw her own conclusions but to her mind there was only one possible outcome.

For seven days Shang Xiang maintained a bedside vigil for her brother. It had been decided by Zhou Yu to withdraw from Ru Nan after seeing his sworn brother's condition. He had taken over in Sun Ce's stead as commander of the army and organized the retreat. But Shang Xiang had paid little attention to these details. She sat by his side in the carriage set aside for Ce's use and did what little she could to keep him comfortable.

Most of the time Sun Ce was in no fit state to notice her efforts. The fever brought on by the deadly toxin sapped him of his strength so that most days he lay quietly unconscious as his body tried to counteract the poison's effects. Sometimes he would wake up and stare at Shang Xiang but even the ability to talk was becoming much harder. To make up for it she told him things, about little things in her life, about the times they'd spent together as children and about how the medics said how well he was fighting the spread of the poison.

He had no way of knowing but every time Shang Xiang spoke of his recovery Ce could see it in her eyes that the medics had said no such thing. But he allowed her to maintain the illusion, more for her sake than for his. Either way he knew that the path would only end in his own demise so there was no harm in allowing his sister to believe that he had hope and that she should hope too. But then he supposed that hope would only hurt her all the more when… It happened. So their lives continued both pretending that the metaphorical cord of his life wasn't fraying more and more with each and every passing second.

Shang Xiang rested little and slept even less. Every night the attendants would encourage her to leave her brother to his own rest and get some of her own. Sometimes they were successful and sometimes they were not. But when she did leave guilt racked at her insides. If she'd followed his orders then none of this would have happened. The only good thing to happen was her meeting with Diao Chan but was it really worth it?

Thinking about Diao Chan surprised her at times since her world only allowed for two people at that time. Diao Chan had joined the expedition to the ancestral home of the Sun family by unspoken invitation but for seven days neither woman had seen the other. Shang Xiang was happy that she'd met the other woman again but the nights were whiled away by her wishes that it had been under different circumstances. Life had handed her a chalice of wine with poison lacing its rim.

Her sleep was disturbed and short-lived. Most nights she would get up again and attend on her sleeping brother. On the seventh night after a particularly vicious nightmare Shang Xiang had awoken with the sheets constricting her into a tight cocoon. After untangling herself she stood and dressed herself in the clothes she had only shed a few hours previously. Without thinking about it she pushed through the tent flap and embraced the cool night air.

The camp, as could have been expected at such a time, was stiller than the grave, a thought which arrived unbidden and unwanted. The moon and the stars lit her path and allowed her to see at least reasonably well. Ignoring the chill as best she could Shang Xiang made the short walk from her tent to the main pavilion where the attendants tried to keep him comfortable each night.

Normally a watch was kept by the attendants so that, if anything untoward should happen, there would be someone to go and fetch the medic. But on that night the post outside the tent door they usually maintained was vacant. The emptiness of the space frightened Shang Xiang immensely. There could only be one reason why they weren't there.

Panicked Shang Xiang pushed her way through the entrance without a second's delay. Her brother was sleeping on the bed in the centre of the tent and at each of its corners an oil lantern burned strongly. A shadow was crouched by the closest side of the bed but the person didn't seem to have noticed Shang Xiang's presence. Despite the light from the lamps it was difficult to make out the identity of the person.

"Is something wrong with him?" Shang Xiang asked, making the figure jump. "Is he dying?"

"There's nothing wrong with him," the person replied as they stood and turned. In the illumination of the lamps she could finally make out that the other person was Diao Chan.

"What are you doing here?" Shang Xiang questioned, quite puzzled by the presence of the other woman.

"I had trouble sleeping so I came to check on your brother. The attendants were tired so I dismissed them, pretending I had your permission to do so. He's was awake when I arrived and needed someone to be beside him."

Shang Xiang ran her index finger down her brother's pale cheek which was surprisingly cold in comparison to how it had been for the previous week. But he was still breathing and didn't look to be in any pain. It lessened her worries somewhat but they were by no means dormant.

Diao Chan stood silently by her side, hands clasped together in front of her and the sole witness to Shang Xiang's show of devotion. She said nothing since there were no words could provide her comfort. Nothing she said or did could take away the other woman's torment. Chan felt uncomfortable even being a witness to what she was seeing. Without a word of warning she turned to leave.

Chan stopped in her tracks when she felt the rough grip of Shang Xiang upon her shoulder. She looked over her shoulder into the eyes of the young warrior. Shang Xiang didn't beg her to stay nor did she try to appeal to her through the use of tears. From their precious few meetings Chan already knew she had too much pride to do that. Instead she remained silent and compelled her to stay that way.

For the longest time neither said a word to one another. They stayed in watchful silence over Sun Ce almost as if waiting for the slightest change in his continence. Neither had any idea how long they stood there but the lamplight was burning low by the time Shang Xiang broke the silence with a question that tweaked her curiosity whenever it came to the forefront of her mind.

"Diao Chan, how did you come to serve under Yuan Shu?"

Chan blinked as if she'd just awoken from a trance but otherwise there was no change in her expression. She stayed quiet and Shang Xiang was about to put the question to her again when she answered.

"It's quite a long story," she said.

"We have the time. Tell me."

After a sigh of contemplation Diao Chan nodded.

"Well…"

_Author Notes:_ And there we have it. Diao Chan and Sun Shang Xiang have met again. As a matter of curiosity does anyone else understand why I gave Diao Chan the particular pseudonym Tan Fu? Tell me if you do. Anyway thanks to everyone who's read and (particularly) reviewed so far.


	6. Diao Chan's Story

Chapter 5 – Diao Chan's Story

_Author Notes:_ Quick point, this chapter is first person narrative but I'm sure you're all perfectly capable of figuring that out for yourselves.

…_Is something the matter, Mistress Sun?_

"I'm just surprised. When you started I didn't imagine the sort of hell that Cao Cao put you through."

_He was cruel, yes, and I hate him for it but it wasn't just him who put me through hell. The brothers three also played a part as I began to tell you, my lady. It was on that first night in Xu Chang I truly feared for my life. Liu Bei's brother is prone to stupid or rash stunts, especially under the influence of alcohol (as I saw in Xiao Pei), but that look in his eye just proved how sincere he was about killing me. I don't think I've ever known fear quite like it. I was never so scared even when I was expelled from the capital into the wild and perilous countryside with only Lu Bu and a small band of his loyal followers as protection._

_I was saved by Liu Bei's other sworn brother. He held back his brother's arm and convinced him to point the sword in a safer direction. I'm not sure why he did it. Maybe it was because Zhang Liao had asked him too care for my well-being beforehand and so had his honour to think about. Or maybe because he didn't like the idea of seeing his brother's prized trophy on a spit. I doubt though it was just because I was in danger of being killed. _

_A few moments later they left to continue their argument elsewhere and leave me a mess of nerves and tears and fear. But I suppose I should be thankful to them in a way._

"Why? What on earth do you owe them?"

_Other than my life you mean? Well there's something about staring death in the face and surviving it that awakens something in a person. I'm sure you've felt that too at one point or another. Facing that threat twice in one week doubles its magnitude. What I mean to say is that because of the experience I'm much stronger than I used to be. Maybe I'm not physically stronger, but in here, in my mind, there's a resolution that hasn't yet wavered. It's thanks to that resolution that I'm standing here talking with you now._

_After they left me I was determined to escape. I hated my imprisonment and I would've hated myself if I didn't try to do something about it. Thoughts of flight gave me meaning in the purposeless world of a prisoner. But the emperor's palace isn't the easiest of places to escape from. Once upon a time any man or woman could come to or go from the palace with the emperor's permission but things have changed in the north._

_His palace is protected by an elite army of guards who answer only to Cao Cao. Although they look as though they're to protect the emperor their ulterior motive is to keep him sealed away under lock, key and sword. They watch his every move and without doubt they watched mine too. Not only that, but the new palace is built like a maze. It's very easy to get lost if you've never been there before and I'd only seen part of it as I was forced to my cell. The newest of the guards at my door themselves grumbled about how often they got lost. Leaving through the window was also impossible. My room was on the highest floor and if the breaking of glass didn't clue Cao Cao's minions in, then the sight of someone scaling the wall would._

_Every window of opportunity was closed off by ten impenetrable barriers so I was left to do the only thing I could do. Wait. By being trapped for days on end, with nothing to do and no-one to talk with, it can leave a person feeling like a cat clawing at the insides of a box. Boredom overtakes everything else very quickly and leaves you either numb or willing to risk all, up to and including your life, just to break free. I experienced both feelings during my imprisonment._

_My opportunity didn't come for several weeks and it came as quite a surprise. Every morning the only human contact I received apart from the brothers three was from a washerwoman. The same woman came in every morning to change the bedding and take away soiled clothes. She was friendly to me in a subtle sort of way. She would look me in the eye, she would smile but she never said a word beyond what was necessary from a servant to the served. Two of Cao Cao's guards were always listening outside my door and I think we both knew what would happen if they overheard any friendly sentiments._

_Then one morning everything changed. It started as any other as dawn's first light shone through the windows and illuminated the room as I paced my frustration away. The same washerwoman as every other day came to my room but she came far earlier than she ever had before. She looked over her shoulder for a moment and then closed the door behind her. She swiftly deposited a large package loosely wrapped in cloth on the bed and bade me come closer._

"_Quick madam, we don't have much time," she said urgently._

_She took the cloth covering away and revealed a selection of items that most palace servants would have access to but shouldn't have. She'd brought me a sword and helmet from the armoury, a guard's uniform from the guardsman's barracks and the simple garb of a poor person living in the city. Beside these there was a small purse containing money but where she got this from was anyone's guess._

_I remember looking at her in surprise. She was a small, pretty young thing, not a day over twenty, and not the sort who looked like she would ever refuse to do as she was told. Her face was one of striking innocence where no guile or ulterior motives could possibly lie. Whatever reason she had brought me these things it wasn't to trick me._

"_The guards are changing now and aren't very careful about their task. Most of them are new and find guarding you to be boring madam. They just leave and expect the other's to arrive and they don't think you can escape. They change at your door every two hours. You should go in the early morning," she warned me. "It looks the least suspicious."_

_Then she picked up my clothes from the day before and turned to leave as if she'd done nothing at all out of the ordinary. But just as she stood in the door (after checking for guards) she turned and told me the emperor sent his regards. With that she turned and disappeared behind the door._

"Did you ever find out what her name was?"

_No. That was the first and only time that we ever had a conversation beyond the normal restraints. It's a shame. I'd like to pay her back one day but it's highly unlikely we'll ever meet again. But she gave me something else to be thankful for. From that day on I've been thankful for the kindness of strangers, a kindness which has been bestowed upon me again by you mistress Sun._

"We're not strangers."

_We are more or less. Before you spared me and allowed me to join you on this road south we'd only met once before. If it wasn't for you my lady I'd be fleeing into the country with Yuan Shu and his men. Thank you._

"You don't owe me thanks. But please continue. You were saying about the washerwoman."

_Yes, she gave me the key to my own salvation. I hid everything at the back of the wardrobe and waited the day out as she suggested. Nothing happened that day and I could've made the attempt at any time if I'd wanted to. But the girl was right. If I'd gone during the day I would've been missed quickly. In the morning I would have a few hours head start._

_Two hours after midnight was when I made my escape. I changed into the peasants clothes first before putting on the uniform of the soldier over it. They fitted well but were quite new and itchy against the skin. The sword was strapped on at my waist and the helm she'd given me covered the top half of my face. _

_It turned out though that the girl was only partly right about the guards. The guards were still changing shifts at the time and the ones who had been standing outside my door were gone. But by the time I came out another guard was standing to the right hand side of the door. His hand was frozen on the hilt of his sword while he spoke to me._

"_What were you doing in there?"_

"_Checking on the girl," I replied quietly, throwing my voice as I did._

"_What was that?" he replied angrily._

"_I was-"_

"_I heard what you said," the guard interrupted, "but you addressed me improperly. In case you haven't noticed I'm a major and the proper respect must be showed. Now tell me again."_

_I was tempted just to ignore him and walk away or even hit him but neither would have helped me get out of the castle. It was easier just to cater to the man's ego._

"_I was checking on the girl, _sir,_" I emphasised through gritted teeth._

_He seemed satisfied and dismissed me as he turned back to his position. He didn't pay me any more attention. I was amazed I'd managed to fool him as my fake voice had sounded very forced to my ears. Still I didn't want to push my luck and get caught. The corridors of Xu Chang palace weren't anything like the ones I'd been used to in the old palace in Luo Yang. Where the old palace had been ordered this one was chaotic, where the old palace's corridors had run in purposeful directions the new one's seemed to branch off into unusual and unnecessary directions. After getting lost three or four times I finally managed to find the grand staircase. _

_The palace was still as the grave in the darkness of early morning and absolutely no-one was about. I ran down the stairs as fast as I could, all the way to the bottom. The entrance hall was completely still and I could hardly believe my luck by the time I was out of the door._

_It was the first time I'd felt fresh air on my face since I'd entered that castle. I had had no balcony and the window had been sealed shut, just in case I got any ideas about escape or suicide. It stank of all the smells of the city and all the better for it. For the first time I'd felt like I'd come back to civilization._

_Negotiating the gate was the trickiest part during the escape since there was no way to leave the palace without going through a gate. However a flash of a piece of paper devoid of any words whatsoever and a lie that I had to deliver a message was almost enough to get me through. I just had to add seven words to the end and the two guards manning the gate let me pass without a second thought._

"What did you tell them?"

_I told them, "This concerns the safety of the emperor." Even if they answer to Cao Cao they were smart enough to know if the emperor were to be hurt or killed in some way and they stopped me, then the consequences would rain down on them. Cao Cao probably would have had their heads and the heads of their entire families before the sun set._

_It was difficult to keep an even pace as I walked through the gate. I wanted nothing more than to sprint out into the streets of the city and never be found again but that would've looked suspicious. I did run though. If I hadn't they would've known I'd lied about the urgency of the message. I didn't stop until I was in the lower city where the poor made their homes and livings. I was quick to lose the uniform at the first opportunity but I still used it to hide the helm and sword from view. If nothing else they would be worth some money later on._

_I didn't stop in the city for long. The longer I stayed, the harder it would be to escape since it would only take Cao Cao so long to discover my escape. Whether I was important enough to send the city patrols out searching for me I have no idea but at the very least Liu Bei would've been very upset. I waited in shadows for a few hours until finally the sun rose and the city gates opened to the public._

_Actually getting out of the city wasn't that difficult. By the time I got to the gates the guards still hadn't been told to look out for me and also to my benefit a group of peasants was waiting to leave through the gate. It wasn't difficult to blend in with the crowd thanks to the clothes the servant had given me and no-one even noticed my arrival. Within minutes I was out through the gate and leaving that god awful city behind me._

_It was only then that I realized for the first time that I had no idea where to go. In the short term I'd planned to find a village not far away to hide in but after that I had no idea which direction to go in. At that moment though which way I went didn't matter. I was only concerned with my immediate survival. _

_The farmlands that surrounded the city reached so far in all directions that after an hour I was still passing by them. A busy road cut straight through the farmlands so the traffic didn't spoil the crops. It was also one of the Emperor's roads so it wasn't uncommon to see small patrols of soldiers keeping the area safe. I passed two such patrols on my way down the road and each time was a terrifying ordeal. Both times though they gave me a cursory glance before going back about their business. Not once did they try to stop me._

_About five miles down the road and as the shadows shortened I stumbled upon a town but in the shadow of the great city it looked like a village. No-one stopped to look at me twice when I entered the town which felt unusual. I was used to some sort of reception wherever I went but back then I'd been dressed in fine clothes and riding atop a great charger. Now I just looked like a regular, non-descript peasant. It wasn't difficult to find an inn once there. The street running off from the main entrance was stuffed full of inns and shops getting progressively higher market the further along the road you went._

_I chose one of the closer inns even though the servant had given me enough money to rent the finest room in the town. Dressed as I was though that would be bound to attract unwanted attention and by nightfall it would be common knowledge that I had disappeared if it wasn't already by then. It wouldn't take long for them to make the connection and I'd back in that castle room faster than you could blink._

_The inn was a respectable place and owned by a hard-working man but his name escapes me now. He had the look of a man who'd been working hard all his life but he was still able to smile and be cordial to anyone who walked through the door. His price was six copper pieces. I gave him twelve and from the look on his face he had had people stay at his establishment before who wanted their privacy protected and name kept secret._

_He showed me to one of the rooms that was on the quieter side of the building before leaving me with key in hand. That was also one of the benefits of paying extra. You got a door with a lock unlike the people who paid less. When I entered the room I used this special perk before throwing myself down on the bed and beginning to think._

_Of the four directions I could've gone in I knew that two were out of the question. I couldn't go west because in the west lies Chang An and the rebels who took it after driving Lu Bu and I out. Going east was also out of the question since those lands were Cao Cao and Liu Bei's. That path led to certain capture and was obviously not an option. That left either fleeing north to the protection of Yuan Shao or heading south into the lands of some emerging southern lord._

"Which direction were you going to go? South?"

_Originally I didn't know. I think it would've been likely that I'd have gone north actually if it hadn't been for a conversation I'd overheard in the common room of the inn._

_The common room was used by both patrons of the inn and a few people who had paid for the privilege to drink there but decided not to stay. Among them was a small group of soldiers fresh from a patrol on the Emperor's road. They spoke loudly and called for more and more ale and drank it down like water. When they were like that there was nothing to fear. They were so dazed they wouldn't have recognized me even if I'd told them who I was. But their tongues had also been liberated by the taste of alcohol and so I stayed to listen._

"_War's coming soon," said one of the men and judging from his fine sword and better uniform he was the senior officer. "Now that Lu Bu's out of the way and Zhang Xiu's surrendered we'll be marching north in no time."_

"_How do you know?" asked one of the others. "Or are you just making it up?"_

"_The commander of the unit told me," replied the officer, "and he's in contact with the high officers."_

_No-one said anything for a moment until one of the younger men, a raw recruit from the look of him, spoke up._

"_We'll win the war for sure," he said. "We've got the greatest commander in the world and no weaklings from the north'll stop us."_

"_You don't know what you're talking about," said another who, unlike some of the others, appeared to be free of intoxication. "You speak of war as if it were a game. Up north they say Yuan Shao has a million men at his command, sorcerers who can control the elements and giant machines that hurl rocks and spit fire and poison. If we go we'll have to be cautious."_

"_I think the kid's right," said the officer. "That's just exaggeration. Yuan Shao may have his legions but we have the best trained, best disciplined army in the empire. There's no way we can lose."_

_They kept talking on and on but their conversation helped me come to the decision that going north was out of the question. Even if Yuan Shao had the ability to win the risk was too great. The next day I bought a horse from the market as well as some men's clothes and cheap armour and left for the south looking like a soldier._

"So how did you end up with Yuan Shu?"

_Ru Nan was the first city I came across that was in the possession of a lord who didn't bow to Cao Cao. On top of that Yuan Shu had thousands of men under his banner and it was well known Cao Cao and he weren't exactly allies. I was fortunate to arrive in Ru Nan when I did. The common word was that Yuan Shu was marshalling an even bigger army than ever before to go to war even if not only the direction, but also the enemy was unclear. The gate captains had apparently been given orders to aid the recruitment drive, referring all able bodied men who couldn't bribe their way out of military service to the barracks. Disguised as I was the guards considered me to be a potential officer and awarded me special treatment. They granted me a guard of four men lead by the captain of the guard himself to escort me directly to Yuan Shu's palace._

_The streets were crowded near to bursting with people of all types from merchants boldly declaring their wares superior to anything their rivals sold, rich townsfolk browsing the market at their leisure, servants accompanying their masters or otherwise doing tasks as hastily as possible to mercenaries who had answered Yuan Shu's call to arms eagerly. And trying to relieve all of them of their money were whores, working the streets discreetly to avoid causing a stir. For a moment I watched one of them with interest, a young girl who couldn't have been older than eighteen, and I felt apathy with her. I knew what it was like to be in her position although I suppose I'd been more fortunate. I had had a room in a palace whereas as she had little better than a stranger's bed to hope for. But she disappeared from my sight as quickly as she'd came since the escort were not simply there to escort me but also to clear the path in the name of the great officer Tan Fu._

"Tan Fu?"

_It was the name I gave to the soldiers at the gate when they asked. I could hardly tell them my real name. A woman in armour on horseback and armed with a sword would simply have attracted too much attention. It was the first name that came to mind. _

_All but the wealthy parted out of the way as soon as the guards called for my path but even they acquiesced when we got closer save for a few of the highest nobles. They stood as they were and watched me pass. The soldiers didn't appear to want to boss those people about and fortunately there wasn't a single one I could recognize or who could recognize me. _

_It wasn't far to the palace after leaving the market district since by all rights Ru Nan isn't a very big city. Neither was Yuan Shu's palace particularly grand. Compared to the palace in Xu Chang it was a rat's hovel but it was still a fine building. They lead my under the arches of the main entrance and then left me in the hands of the palace guards. A stable boy was already waiting to take my horse the moment I dismounted and two palace guards, armed with short spears and wearing purple cloaks to mark them as palace bodyguards, led me to the throne room._

_It was there that I got my first glimpse of Yuan Shu. He sat in his seat on the raised dais discussing strategy with some of his more senior war councillors and officers. All words ceased and all eyes focused on me as I was announced. There was a long pause._

_Then one of the officers laughed._

"_What are you here for boy?" he yelled across the chamber. "Are you here to dance for us?"_

_Some of the other officers laughed along with him. My response was to draw my sword and hold it in salutation._

"_I am here to offer my sword to Lord Yuan Shu," I yelled, trying my best to keep my voice level and distinctly masculine. It seemed to be convincing enough. "And I'm sure you're much the better dancer, sir."_

_There was another chorus of laughter as the officer, quite outraged, stamped his feet and reached for his own sword at his waist._

"_Halt."_

_Yuan Shu was also standing now, calm but commanding, and the officer was swift to do as ordered. Then he looked to me._

"_Tan Fu?" he said. "Where do you come from?"_

"_I was once an officer of Dong Zhuo," I told him as a half truth. "I was one of the officers who aided in his assassination and was banished from the capital. I've wandered ever since unable to find a lord worthy to serve."_

_The meaning of my statement brought a small smile to his face but his tone remained the same._

"_But are you worthy to serve me?" he asked rhetorically. "Prove yourself against one of my officers."_

"_Allow me to test him, my lord," exclaimed the officer who'd spoken first. His hand hadn't left the hilt of his sword ever since he placed it there._

"_As you will Rui, but don't butcher him."_

_The officer seemed to relish the song of his blade as it was freed from its scabbard. In comparison to the man gleaming in polished armour and fine garments I must've looked like a common mercenary. The fight was as short as the assembled officers probably predicted but with a twist. It was I still standing while my adversary had been neatly disarmed and forced to yield._

_Yuan Shu was the only one to laugh this time. His voice was harsh and barking but there was no ill feeling behind his amusement, at least not from what I could see._

"_Good, very good," he applauded. "You're certainly sharper than that blunted thing you call a sword. I like you but there is one more test I should like you to take."_

_This time his biggest and strongest officer stood up to challenge. His name was Ji Ling._

"I met him once, same day as I met you actually. But he was huge then. How did you beat him?"

_Simply put I didn't. Every trick in the book I tried he'd perfected to a level far beyond my own. The only man I've met that was stronger than him - well, never mind that. In the end he ended the fight by breaking my sword with his own and knocking me to the ground with the force of the blow. All I was left with was the hilt and half a foot of broken steel. Even if I wanted to the only hurt I could've caused him then would be a slight scratch on his enamelled breastplate, an act which would have been overly hopeful in its futility._

_No-one had anything to say after the word 'yield' resounded against the silent walls of the throne room. None of the laughter or the 'told-you-so's' I was expecting were given voice. Ji Ling and a few of the other officers looked at me as something akin to respect began to awaken their features. The others looked to their lord, clearly uncertain what to think and clearly the sort who went along mindlessly with whatever he said._

_Ji Ling then offered me a hand and from that moment on I was an officer fighting under Yuan Shu. He observed my oath of fealty (which required the use of a borrowed sword) and named me a junior officer. His first order was to go the armoury and get myself a decent sword and armour. Of all the things I'd brought from the north I kept only my helm. I might have won their respect as a man but as a woman I would have won nothing but their unbridled rage. I think Yuan Shu and one or two others may have known but in the first case if he knew he didn't care and in the second case they kept their silence either of their own free will or their lord's decree._

_And that's – mistress Sun, look. Lord Sun Ce is awakening._

_Author Notes:_ A few quick notes. Firstly my thanks to those who reviewed the last couple of chapters. Secondly my apologies for the length of time it took to update but my reasons are my own. Finally my anxieties about writing this chapter in a narrative style haven't been dispelled yet. In other words I'm not at all happy. This won't be a permanent feature to the story but may appear again as I enjoy writing narrative. So please review and tell me what you think to the highest degree of honesty.

Oh and I lied in the chapter. Tan Fu was actually the pseudonym of Liu Bei's strategist Xu Shu in the book. I found it appropriate for Diao Chan since both she and he wanted to conceal their true identities.


	7. The Politics of Marriage

Chapter 6 – The Politics of Marriage

"I'm sorry I'm taking so long to die,"

Sun Ce's eyes had flickered open slowly and for the first time in such a period that Shang Xiang had forgotten he could talk he spoke to her. His voice was hoarse from disuse but he spoke nonetheless even if they weren't the words she wanted to hear. There was a shadow of a smile on his face but it made his features look all the more drawn in the poor light.

"Don't say that." Shang Xiang told him, trying to keep from sounding as the desperate child she felt like. "You'll recover like I did."

"Like father did you mean," the dying lord replied. "Truth be told, dear sister, I feel little pain but I get weaker everyday. I never thought it should be like this. I always believed it would be swift on a field somewhere."

"It will be, many years from now."

"Don't delude yourself baby sister."

He had picked those words carefully, she knew. She could see it in the expression on his face. If there was anything that could possibly annoy her more…

"I'm older than you," she declared but her tone had hardly changed. If anything she felt more downhearted than before. "I've always been older than you." It had been customary for Ce to annoy her as such when they were children playing with sticks for swords. The thought that he might never say it again however weighed heavily on her mind.

"I know, I know," he replied in an uncustomary fashion. Never before had he failed to press home his point. Back then he'd taunted her until she made a mistake and lost the stick duel. Now his eyes wandered to the rough cloth ceiling as if he had suddenly found something more interesting than her written upon it. Then his eyes wandered to Diao Chan. Shang Xiang felt a jolt of surprise go through her as she saw the woman standing silently with her hands clasped together in front of her. It had only been a few moments since she finished her tale but Shang Xiang had forgotten she was there. For his part Ce didn't question why she should be in that tent as a witness to his final moments. In fact he didn't question anything.

"You," he said, pointing with a shaking hand. "I've forgotten your name. The poison makes my mind weak too. But that doesn't matter. You will serve our family, yes?" He didn't wait for an answer. "I have orders for you."

If Diao Chan had felt any surprise to be so suddenly addressed she did well to conceal it. "What do you ask, my lord?"

"Two things. I've heard of your prowess in battle. As good as my sister I've heard and I know she's taken a shine to you. I therefore give you the rank of captain and order you to be my sister's bodyguard. Will you do so?"

This time Diao Chan couldn't keep her face in line. Her eyes flickered to her potential mistress and remained trained on her for a few moments. Shang Xiang said nothing. In truth she liked the proposal but there were slightly more important matters at hand. Still she kept her silence and waited for Chan, whose eyes had now moved to study her brother, to answer.

"I live only to serve, my lord," she replied finally.

"Good. My last order to you is this. Take my sister out of this tent and stay with her until I'm gone."

Those words hadn't been weighted so carefully and Ce knew it the moment he'd finished speaking them. His sister jumped to her feet, with as much fury as a storm at sea, and was momentarily speechless at the audacity of his request. Her lord he might be but in that tent titles mattered little to Shang Xiang and his authority even less.

"You can't do that," she yelled at her prone brother, her anger finally articulating itself. "From what I heard you kept a constant vigil when father and I were dying but you deny me the same right? Why? You can't do that," she repeated.

"I can and I will," he replied, his own voice rising but to no louder than how he would normally talk and was obviously straining to do even that. "Now leave."

In almost perfect time to his demand Shang Xiang felt delicate skin brush against her own. Diao Chan had moved silently to her side without her noticing and while Shang Xiang saw nothing but concern in her new bodyguard's eyes Shang Xiang's anger was magnified. The hold of her hand had a poisonous effect on her and before Shang Xiang knew what was happening her brother had yelled a reproach as Chan went away reeling with a hand raised to her cheek. She hadn't even realized what she was doing until the act was done.

Diao Chan stood straight once more and looked as if she was about to try to remove her again. But she didn't.

She stood down instead.

"I can't force mistress Sun to leave, my lord. I'm afraid she's right. It isn't fair."

It was only then that nagging guilt ate away at Shang Xiang's insides. Chan's cheek was rosy red from the contact and looked as though it stung. However her bodyguard didn't utter a word of complaint as she bore witness to Ce's anger struggling to manifest itself. He was just like Shang Xiang in so many ways. And his anger too was short-lived. It didn't take long for him to apologize for his actions and for a moment all was well. For that moment everything was almost normal again. Ce's railing cough brought her back from the bliss of the moment.

Diao Chan left the tent a few moments later with orders to rouse and bring Zhou Yu to the tent. Left alone neither sibling said a word. Instead Shang Xiang took her brother's hand in hers. His hand was incredibly warm. The gentle sound of the tent flap opening several minutes later attracted her attention for only a moment. Zhou Yu wasted no time and came straight to Ce's bedside. Diao Chan wavered by the exit.

And it was her that Sun Ce's eyes landed on first.

"One more thing," he whispered so quietly that Chan had no choice but to move closer to his deathbed. "My wits haven't all disappeared yet. You've done me a great service tonight and I thank you. Go as you will."

Diao Chan didn't think twice but disobeying his order and turned her back on the tent as quickly as was polite. Shang Xiang wondered at her brother's thanks for a moment before dismissing it. Whatever it was he thanked her for wasn't important right then.

It would be a long time before Sun Shang Xiang ever understood what her brother truly meant by those words.

000000

The next week passed as a blur to Shang Xiang. After leaving her brother in the tent that night the next memory she had was beneath the city walls, despite the fact it had been another full day's march between the two events. It had been there that Sun Ce finally breathed his last with a smile on his face and with joy in his heart at seeing his home one last time. Several more days passed with only vague impressions on her memory until the unforgettable sound of iron doors clanging shut demanded a place in her thoughts. That sound heralded the undeniable end of her brother. He would never walk again. He would never speak, eat, ride or fight again. Now he would only sleep in a tomb of stone beside their father behind those iron doors.

During the whole period Shang Xiang had been inconsolable and any who tried to comfort her soon gave it up as a bad job. She could no longer recall the faces, voices or even the names of the well wishers and grief bearers she had seen over the last few days in the city. She remembered the tears though. She would cry alone and she would cry in company, ever mourning for the brother she had lost. But as time passed she began to control her tears (but whether she had any more to shed was questionable) and she began observing again. That morning one of the Prefect's guard, distinguishable by the red breastplates, helms and cloaks they wore, had come to her with a summons to the Hall. She also remembered walking down the corridor and her curiosity about the summons.

It was curious seeing Sun Quan sit in the chair named by many as the throne of the Suns. She had seen her grandfather sit in it briefly when she was very young and then her father when she was six. Sun Ce had taken the chair after their father's untimely demise and after his own the chair passed to Quan. The chair didn't seem to suit him. She had never imagined that he would ever sit upon that chair in the first place but if he ever did Shang Xiang had always assumed he would be far older with grey in his hair. As it was the chair seemed to consume him. His arms rested regally upon the rests but he seemed to strain himself in so doing. The throne had been made for a man but he was a boy. Still one might not have guessed it with the way he held himself.

Several others had already assembled in the hall by the time Shang Xiang had arrived. While ordinarily they dressed in garb of the finest threads, sometimes to the point of extravagance, today they all wore the black of mourners. She didn't look at any of them as she passed, nor did she ask for invitation to sit beside her brother on the stool which she traditionally occupied. Quan acknowledged her but he didn't say a word. Instead he watched the door on the far side of the hall as officers responded to the summons.

It seemed that all the most important officers of the land were in attendance. In some cases where the most important had been unable to come proxy-officers had been sent in their stead. There was neither a smile to be seen in the room nor a voice to be heard. All waited on their lord to speak first.

"You have been assembled here to recognize my right to sit upon this seat as the lord of the province," Sun Quan told them. "The emperor had presided over my succession and granted my right to rule but he is in the hands of the prime minister. It is the prime minister's words we have, not our emperor's. Therefore I look to you, my lords and loyal followers, to denounce me if you think I'm unworthy."

Shang Xiang couldn't deny she was impressed. He had spoke with the airs and dignity of a king and commanded the respect and loyalty of all in attendance. All of a sudden the chair didn't seem to fit him so bad anymore.

No-one spoke a word.

"My brother left me with this before he died," Zhou Yu said whilst bowing to the throne. It was clear he held a sealed document in his hand. It was the same document which Sun Ce had dictated and sealed on the night in the pavilion. "It is our lord's will."

He didn't need permission to break the seal and read the contents within.

"I, Sun Ce, governor of Jiang Dong, declare Sun Quan to be my lawful heir. All lands pass to him and all prefects and officers of Jiang Dong shall swear their undying loyalty to him also. The Ancestral Sword of the Sun Family is also to be kept and wielded by my brother.

"I also offer him this advice. You should be just and fair to all your subjects whether they are common or high born. You should be swift and unyielding in the treatment of your enemies. For internal matters you should seek the advice of Zhang Zhao and for matters concerning the safety of our borders you should seek the advice of Zhou Yu. Keep them both close and keep them as friends."

Zhou Yu looked up then from the letter and fixed his eyes on Shang Xiang.

"You are also mentioned in this letter my lady. Shall I read it now?"

She nodded but she knew what was to be said anyway. After all she had been there when it was written. But better not to keep things from the officers.

"I also implore my brother to accept this final piece of advice concerning our sister Sun Shang Xiang. I have taken a woman into our service named Diao Chan who was captured in the battle. She has consented to become our sister's bodyguard. I advise you to accept her service. It is with a heavy heart that I must leave you but the god's have decided my time. Serve my brother well my lords."

Once more silence prevailed across the room as Zhou Yu spoke the last syllables and presented the document to Sun Quan. He wasted no time in reading it through silently to himself. He had sat so still that the only sign that he'd finished reading it was when he folded the letter delicately and placed it within his robes, close to his heart and out of sight.

"This Diao Chan," Quan began. "Is she qualified to serve you dear sister?"

For the first time he turned to face her and the change in his face was startling. Gone was the young boy she'd loved since she first set eyes on him so many years ago. He was grown now and it showed in his face.

"Yes, I think so," she replied.

"Find her," he ordered the guards standing to attention beside the door. They moved to obey his orders without question or hesitation. As they waited one of the proxy-officers from the southern border moved forwards and asked Sun Quan's permission on a matter of procuring supplies. Apparently the southern barbarians were acting up again and the supplies were vital.

However the business was interrupted in mid-discussion as it transpired that they didn't have long to wait. Diao Chan walked into the hall uncertainly beside one of the Prefect Guard and looked undesirably feminine. She wore robes of red bound at her waist by a sash of gold. Her hair was arranged on top of her head in a simple bun and her face, though devoid of any facial paint, was undeniably beautiful. Her waist was devoid of a sword belt and as it happened she neither wore nor carried a weapon of any description. All in all she looked like a most unconvincing candidate for the position of bodyguard to the most vicious woman in the south.

Apparently Shang Xiang wasn't the only one who thought as such. Several of the officers, some who had gone to war against Yuan Shu and others who had not, stepped forward in protest, their individual voices lost in a tide of complaint. In the end the most senior of them, Cheng Pu, made his voice heard.

"You can't be serious my lord," he cried. "This woman is better suited to be serving tables than to be serving in battle. I doubt she even has the strength to swing a sword."

Most of the officers assembled murmured in agreement. Shang Xiang didn't move to defend her, as much as she wanted to. If Chan was to be accepted then she needed to fight her own battles and prove her capabilities. She couldn't do that if the one Chan was supposed to be protecting leapt to her defence.

Chan hesitated for a moment but didn't seem to lose her composure. Her eyes shifted from Cheng Pu to Sun Quan who she bowed to upon one knee.

"Though I might not be the strongest of warriors nor the doughtiest of heroes I have swung swords. I have killed men who thought I could not. But skill with a sword doesn't come from strength alone, not if you don't know how to use it."

The majority of the officers were stunned into silence which made Chan's final words all the more powerful.

"I do."

It wasn't enough for Cheng Pu though.

"Anyone can use a sword. All you have to do is pick it up at the handle and use the pointy end to kill."

Some of the officers laughed behind their hands but when either their lord's or their lady's eyes moved to them they promptly stopped. They seemed to have forgotten momentarily that they were dressed in mourner's garb.

"My lady Sun has been beating up boys twice her age since she was eight and killing men on the field since she was sixteen," Cheng Pu continued. "Exactly what qualification do _you_ have in comparison?"

"I was unaware I needed to be qualified," Chan retorted. "I thought I just had to pick the sword up by the handle and use the pointy end to kill."

Cheng Pu had no answer to that. He stared at the woman for a moment with fury in his eyes before he smiled at her.

"Well met, Diao Chan. I never thought I'd be beaten by a woman in an argument."

"I'm sure. I doubt many women would want to argue with _you_."

Cheng Pu picked up on the veiled insult and scowled at Diao Chan but it was clear he wasn't at all angry. No-one dared laugh though, not after what had happened before.

"She's got balls, I'll give her that," Han Dang ventured. "And it'd be hypocritical to keep her off the field for the crime of being born a woman."

Shang Xiang allowed herself to give an encouraging smile to Diao Chan. She had taken everything around her in her stride but still noticed her mistress' gesture and returned one of her own.

"Have you all gone mad?" cried one of the proxy-officers. "Just because she's smart enough to defend herself verbally doesn't mean she could do the same with steel. I propose we put her to the test.

"Enough of this," Sun Quan decreed. We have wasted enough time arguing about it." To Diao Chan he said, "I accept your service and charge you with the defence of my sister on the field. And I ask you to prove yourself in our next battle."

'_Very deftly done,' _Shang Xiang thought. In just two sentences he had managed to satisfy everyone in the audience chamber and it showed. No-one else raised their voice in objection.

"As my lord commands," Chan replied. "By your leave, my lord?"

He dismissed her with a wave of his hand and she left the chamber once more. The business concerning the barbarians from the south was concluded with a promise of supplies and a further five legions of men if they were required.

"There are other pressing matters at hand, sire," the old statesman named Zhang Zhao declared. "You have no other siblings save the lady Sun and are unmarried. The succession must be dealt with. You should declare my lady Sun as you heir as soon as possible."

Quan smiled at that. "I can think of no-one I should want to succeed me any more than my sister."

"By that as it may," the statesman continued. "It is not enough alone to declare your sister your heir. You must sire your own and soon."

Shang Xiang was surprised by that although she couldn't have said why. Her brother was always going to have a wife and children one day but she had never imagined that day would come so soon.

But still Zhang Zhao hadn't finished speaking.

"It may also be prudent if my lady Sun was to wed."

This time shock coursed through her veins and its existence was justified. Neither her father nor brothers had ever planned to betroth her as far as she knew and now it was being declared not only to her face but to the face of the most influential officers of the region. The trap had been well set. In the face of so many, she couldn't reasonably elbow her duty to one side while half the province watched.

Not that that would stop her however.

"And just who would you plan on shackling me to?" she asked, her words chosen carefully for effect.

If Zhang Zhao was fazed though, he didn't show it. "Lord Liu Biao's wife died a few months ago-"

Surprisingly it wasn't Shang Xiang who spoke out in complaint. Rather her brother, though still seated, was clearly angered by the prospect.

"You would marry my only sister to my father's murderers?"

"Lord Sun Jian's death was a great loss not just to Jiang Dong but to the empire as a whole," Zhang Zhao replied. "But we can't let personal vendettas get in the way of our goals, especially since Jing is the key to the defence of this province. However, that was not my proposal my lord.

"Liu Biao remarried several weeks ago to a woman of Cai family. As it is the Cai's are the most powerful family in Jing, second only to the prefect's family themselves. There are three brothers of the Cai family. The eldest and the head of the family is called Cai Mao. He is unmarried and influential in Liu Biao's court. If we were to cement an alliance through marriage with the Cai family it may come to pass that Jing shall fall to you one day. Liu Biao isn't known for his robustness and he has only one heir and should this heir happen to have an accident…"

Although there was promise in such an alliance Shang Xiang was still utterly opposed to it. She didn't know this Cai Mao. It didn't matter how much power he may have politically, that wasn't what was important to her. If she were to marry it would be to a man famed for his victories and prowess in battle, not for how he was able to manipulate an ailing old man.

However she said nothing as her brother sat morally opposed to such a union but even so, he seemed more interested in it than she did and didn't fight the decision as vigorously as she would've liked. Other suitors from a variety of positions in not only Jing but also Jiang Dong and the north were suggested but she was no more enthusiastic about any one of them from the man before him.

"If I may speak," Huang Gai interrupted after half an hour of suggestions and rebukes between Quan and his ministers. The hall quietened for him and that was permission enough. "Who would my lady wish to marry?"

The way he looked at her as he asked suggested he knew the answer already. As he should since he had known her since she was a child after all. More for effect than anything else Shang Xiang stood before the procession with her arms folded across her chest. She stared coldly at those who had sought to use her as a bargaining chip.

"I will marry no-one," she declared. She stepped down from her place on the dais and walked the length of the hall as officers of all ranks turned to stare at her. She refused to meet the eyes of any of them but continued walking until the heavy wooden doors were pulled shut by the door servants behind her.

The corridor she had stepped into opened out directly onto a small water garden before her so that the wall that stood there looked more like a low fence. Ordinarily she might have given the garden a cursory glance before moving elsewhere but this time she stayed. Diao Chan was sat on the wall with her back to the chamber Shang Xiang had come out of. From where she was standing Chan appeared entranced by one of the greater stone fountains towards the centre of the garden. That one was taller than the rest but simpler also. A stone pillar stood in the centre of the circle retaining the water. Seated atop this pillar were three marble tigers, each one sitting on its hind quarters and roaring. But the gentler sound of falling water emerged from their mouths rather than a roar.

Diao Chan didn't seem to have noticed the doors opening and swinging shut again. Shang Xiang wondered whether she should leave her to her tranquil scene. She thought she should but decided against her better judgement and moved behind the other woman. When her shadow fell across Chan the seated woman gave a small start but didn't turn around to look at her. Instead Shang Xiang seated herself next to her on the wall.

"I was waiting for you," Chan declared. "It wouldn't be well for me to go far if I'm to be your bodyguard, would it?"

Shang Xiang allowed herself a small smile before the memory of what had been discussed in the chamber returned to her.

"Why are you upset?" Chan asked.

Shang Xiang met her question with a question. "Why did you wait for me?"

"Curiosity," Chan replied. "And I believe I asked you a question first."

With a sigh Shang Xiang explained to her how she'd been officially recognized as heir and had been required to marry immediately. She discussed her list of suitors as she remembered them and spoke of each one in non-too-glowing terms.

"Why are you opposed to marriage, my lady?"

That question took more effort to answer truthfully.

"I'm not. If I were to marry I should like to marry a hero of the times. I don't want to be married to some unimportant officer for minor gain. I want to be remembered for being the wife of a great man and leave a legacy as a great fighter. I want to leave a legacy as worthy as my father's and my brother's."

"My lady, your father and brother are dead and have only left their legacies in dying. A person can forge their legacy and live to see it. But my lady should remember that a highborn woman's wants are seldom fulfilled."

Then Diao Chan said no more. Awkwardly Shang Xiang wondered what it was Chan had wanted. But she decided against asking. That would be too personal a question for a woman she hardly knew.

Besides, she might not like the answer.

_Author Notes:_ Thanks to all for the reviews but my thanks go especially to Flame Rising. You may find this confusing but I actually asked him to give my story a personalized flame and I'm delighted with the results. That may be difficult to understand but I'm not being sarcastic. The guy's in my favourite's list after all.


	8. A Stranger's Mistakes

Chapter 7 – A Stranger's Mistakes

Several days after her inauguration as a bodyguard, Diao Chan found herself standing in the sparing grounds just a small walk away, west from the mansion. She'd been told it was most commonly used for the training of raw recruits for the city guard but today it was devoid of human life aside from her own. The early morning sunshine illuminated the hard, well trodden earth that made up the centre of the grounds, and the wooden walkways which surrounded it. Nature evidently had a sense of humour to make such a place seem so peaceful.

As the newly instated bodyguard waited, she absent-mindedly watched the moon, a bright white splotch on the canvas of light blue. For the briefest moment she marvelled at its persistence. Subconsciously, she had once likened herself to the celestial orb whenever it hung in the domain of the sun. It's time had long since come but it held on stubbornly, seemingly unwilling to go back into the darkness. She had been much like that for several years, as events she had no control over that were decided by the people who controlled her had conspired against her for their own agendas. Yet all the time she somehow managed to resist falling into total and utter despair. The thought elated her somewhat. She needn't look at the daytime moon and see a companion in struggles anymore. Those dark days had drawn to a close and she prayed never to see them again.

The sound of footsteps against the wooden planks roused her from her thoughts. The crowd of women Diao Chan had been anticipating had finally arrived. There were about fifty of them in total, all bearing swords at their waists and all girded in light armour. Without being ordered the women formed themselves into organised ranks, plates of armour screeching at each other and footsteps collectively punishing the already punished earth. The previous peace that was so close to serenity Chan had been experiencing was gone, even when the women stood to attention and in complete stillness. Their eyes followed the bodyguard's every move and once she took a step towards them, they saluted in a broken, un-regimented bow. The previous show of discipline had been dispelled quite thoroughly.

These were Sun Shang Xiang's ladies in waiting, all of whom had been ordered to fence by their mistress as a part of their training and as a prerequisite to being accepted formerly into her service. From these fifty Diao Chan had to choose the best to form a new bodyguard unit. Unfortunately, despite the fact every one of the women before her acted as their lady's protector within the confines of the stone walls, the vast majority had only ever fought in sparing matches. They'd never truly seen the realities of battle nor had they ever been properly disciplined as a unit before. It made her task all the more immense as Chan not only had to ascertain which of the women possessed the greatest skill with the sword, but also the ability to keep their head in battle. Without that skill they were useless for the task.

Though it had been Diao Chan's idea to assemble a small group of bodyguards, it had been Shang Xiang's idea to give the unit a name. Chan hadn't seen the point at first, until it was explained to her how it would unify them under one banner as a sisterhood and be something to feel proud of. The honour of being a bodyguard of a great lord's sister and heir to the realm of Jiang Dong would also be considerable enough to make women fight for the honour. It had taken quite some time with many names being rejected for a whole variety of reasons before they concurred on one. The new unit was to be known as the Maidensguard.

A definite number of how many bodyguards but it was to be small. The fewer positions there were, the harder her ladies in waiting would work to attain them. Besides too many bodyguards would probably do more harm than good in the confusion of the battlefield. The selection process had also been left for her to decide since one of the duties attached to the title of First Sword which Chan now bore was to select candidates for the unit.

The selection process she had decided to use was a long, but overall also quite a simple one. The ladies in waiting divided into pairs and were given five minutes to prove their skill. However a woman didn't necessarily have to win the duel to be advanced. It wasn't simply a matter of winning but a matter of impressing Diao Chan. Several candidates impressed her very early on in this stage. One of the eldest women named Hei Xin, a woman Chan vaguely recognised having seen her with Shang Xiang once or twice, proved she shouldn't be underestimated by decimating her much younger opponent in less than a minute.

Another called Zu Gan had provided a different show by steadily parrying against her opponent for long enough for her opponent to fall into a sense of superiority. A feint and a stop thrust to the chest had knocked her opponent off balance before her feet were taken from under her, ending the match. Such a skill could not only save a life in battle but end one too.

The second round was much like the first as the remaining women were once again divided into pairs and were given the same conditions to be advanced. Since these were women were superior to those eliminated Chan expected an interesting competition. Neither Hei Xin nor Zu Gan disappointed her, fighting each other so intensely that Chan forget to tell them to stop so they just kept going. Neither woman could get the upper hand, both throwing everything into spirited offence and staunch defence and twice forcing spectators to move out of the way or lose a limb. Ultimately, after twenty minutes, Diao Chan stopped them and advanced them both.

Several other women also distinguished themselves in their fights that had previously escaped her notice. Hua Lei, Lu Mi and Fan Ying had also won their fights through various means. Hua Lei had won through a combination of intimidation and an unrelenting assault, Lu Mi through guile and cunning feints that allowed her to circle and attack her opponent before they could react and Fan Ying knocked the sword out of adversary's hand in just two moves.

With only 15 women left the third round took on a different tack. This time each woman took to the field alone. Chan set them against two of the defeated guardswomen simultaneously and gave them as long as they needed. Zu Gan surprisingly went down against the joint assault as did a third of the remaining women in the contest. Those who survived were pitted against three opponents and as such the numbers trickled down again to six. Hei Xin, Hua Lei, Lu Mi and Fan Ying had all survived alongside two other women named Sun Dai and Hua Cai.

As a penultimate test the remaining women were once again put into pairs and this time faced an onslaught of six opponents. Hua Lei and Hua Cai, obviously sisters due not only to the family name but to their identical watery eyes and similar angular faces, stood back to back with their swords pointing to the sky. Their opponents circled them, dodging in and feinting before falling back again. The women knew each other and their fighting styles very well so the first few minutes of the contest consisted solely of circling, both sides looking for a single weakness to exploit. The sister's greatest strength though was unpredictability and their sudden separation took both opponents and spectators by surprise. A sustained applause went up across the grounds, not only from Diao Chan and the ladies in waiting, but also the various townspeople who had stopped to watch as the sisters stepped off the field in victory.

Sun Dai and Fan Ying went up next against the same amount of opponents. Dai and Ying didn't stand back to back as their predecessors had but they did watch each other's backs. The way they operated was also different. Early on the offenders made foolish mistakes and whenever that occurred the two moved together to exploit them. Slowly it dawned on the diminished offenders to attack as a group but couldn't stand against the superior defenders with their dwindled numbers. Dai and Ying walked off the courtyard in triumph and followed by another wave of tumultuous applause. Dai attempted to sling her arm around her companion's shoulders but was quickly shrugged off and earned herself a look that could make an army stop and think twice about coming any closer.

The final pair consisted of Hei Xin and Lu Mi and it was clear from the start that these women weren't going to work as well together as the others had. Though they didn't seem to bear a grudge against each other, their fighting styles were so different that they didn't compliment each other. Xin had dashed in with sword held aloft against a wedge of three opponents while Mi fought one opponent at a time, constantly moving to the side and getting in a hit wherever she could. In the end they prevailed but they had only worked together so far as keeping their enemies divided. But regardless they came away from the courtyard to as much tumultuous applause as the others had.

All the time that Diao Chan watched she wondered if she deserved the title of First Sword as some of the feats her soon-to-be sisters in arms performed were simply amazing to behold. However all six stood before her with their blunted swords in their hands and none of them even looked as if they should or would question her position. In fact they seemed to regard her with some sort of wary admiration. She wondered why that was.

Chan was prevented from asking though by an old woman who had made her way from the crowd of spectators to her side. Though she'd never seen the woman before, the bodyguard assumed that she must belong to the household given how all the ladies in waiting bowed to her as she passed them. Even so despite her short residence at the mansion it struck Chan as odd that she didn't recognise her, especially as everyone else seemed too.

"An excellent show," the woman said to the six before her. They all acknowledged her with smiles from some and a silent nod from others. However after her initial assessment she seemed to lose interest in them and snapped her eyes to Chan instead. "You are Diao Chan are you not?" the woman asked with polite interest.

"I am," she replied in slight surprise. Still unsure of who the woman was and therefore how much deference to pay her, Chan simply opted for the most respectful. "How do you know who I am, my lady?"

"I'm not a lady," the woman said with a smile, warm rather than condescending as Diao Chan had been expecting, "but as for your question you are well known throughout the country. You are the hand which smote Dong Zhuo, the mace which smashed Cao Cao at Pu Yang and now the sword which guards our Lady Sun. How can I not know you?"

If she hadn't been surprised before Chan certainly was now. Though her participation in the plot that culminated in Dong Zhuo's death was well known in the north she didn't think the story had travelled so far south. Indeed the admiration her sisters-in-arms showed her seemed to increase ever so slightly.

"You flatter me," Chan replied, "but you exaggerate my role in those events."

The woman paused for a moment and then dismissed the conversation with a wave of her hand. "Well either way this can wait for another time as it's not you I have come to see. Where can I find Lady Sun?"

"Is she expecting you?"

"No, but she knows me well. I'm sure though that she will be pleased to see me."

"How do you know her?"

It wasn't the woman that answered however. Hua Cai cheerily informed her that the woman had once saved Shang Xiang's life.

By being informed of such an important thing about her mistress' life through the appearance of a stranger who was strange to no-one but her, it reminded Diao Chan that she was in fact the stranger. She gave the six orders to return to the same sparing grounds the next morning with their blunted swords to carry out their final test before finally dismissing them. Soon enough she was left alone with only the old woman for company, the crowd of spectators having dispersed long ago.

"Lady Sun is at the mansion," Chan told her. "Follow me."

As they walked Chan took the opportunity to observe the woman as they passed down the corridors. She looked different from most of the people in Jian Ye. Her clothing and hair were somewhat rustic and she even smelt different from city people. However her posture was straight without a hint of stiffness and not many people walked like that outside of the cities. She neither had the bent posture of a field labourer nor did she have the aura of the wealthy. The woman was truly an enigma and her face however betrayed no secrets and surrendered no more clues as to her identity.

"Did you expect to find lady Sun at the sparing grounds?" Chan questioned in an attempt to make small talk.

"No. I was on the way to the mansion but as I passed those grounds I recognised you on sight."

"You've seen me before?"

"In Xu province. I'm afraid you weren't in a fit state to notice."

After that she said no more and they proceeded in silence. When they arrived at Shang Xiang's chambers they were only met by an empty room. The old woman seated herself in a wicker chair beside the window overlooking the eastern side of the gardens, sitting patiently and apparently not at all bothered by the emptiness of the room.

"Mistress Sun isn't here," Chan informed the woman who's back remained to her.

"Thank you but I could see that for myself. I'm old, not blind," the woman replied, still as a statue.

Diao Chan spluttered for a moment in embarrassment and was all too aware of the slight red tinge beginning to colour her face. Thinking she had mortally offended the elder woman as only the mortally embarrassed could fear, Chan tried to apologise but this only served to amuse the woman further. It was only as the seated woman began to grin, that Chan realised she'd made a fool of herself. However the other woman seemed to realise this as she didn't laugh. Chan was profoundly grateful.

Diao Chan was spared further embarrassment however by the entrance of Sun Shang Xiang. It was clear she had also been to the sparing grounds within the mansion through subtle reasons such as her slight, tired slump as she walked and glaringly obvious reasons such as the fact that her chakrams were in her left hand.

Shang Xiang jumped and gave a little cry of surprise, hastily suppressed by her free hand, clearly not having expected to find anyone in her chambers. Only then did it occur to Diao Chan that she was effectively trespassing in her lady's private rooms. But for the old woman's part she sat completely still, unmoved and seemingly oblivious to everything going on around her. The silence, though only momentary, seemed longer.

"Diao Chan… why are you here?" Shang Xiang asked, her voice back at its normal tone.

Again Chan was spared from answering by the elder woman standing from her chair and making her presence known with a slight cough. Shang Xiang turned to her, her eyes glazed over in momentary confusion, before a look of welcoming recognition descended on her face.

"Yin Mei!" She cried, this time unable to keep the surprise out of her voice. Though she didn't look or sound delighted, she was obviously pleased to see the venerable old woman.

The old woman gave a toothy smile which showed off the majority of her remaining crooked teeth. It was clear to anyone who looked that there was a certain bond between them that can only be achieved through one saving the other's life. "It is good to see you looking well Lady Sun."

"Is there a reason why you've come?"

"Yes my lady. I've heard the most tragic and disturbing rumours around the countryside. People are saying that Lord Sun Ce has died."

It was almost incomprehensible how swiftly Sun Shang Xiang's mood appeared to change. Though she made no conscious sign her bright, almost happy appearance had been frozen as if by the biting winds of winter. It was all the answer Yin Mei needed.

"So it is true then. Forgive me my lady. I have heard so many tales about our lord's death on the way here that I questioned if any were true at all. This is terrible news."

Shang Xiang said nothing but gestured to the chair where Yin Mei had been sitting previously, before occupying the chair closest to it.

"The wound must still be raw," Yin Mei continued "Alas grief is one of those things that I can't cure."

In response the woman received a long stare of contemplation from Shang Xiang, neither cold nor calculating, neither warm nor inviting. It appeared so empty that for a moment it seemed that Shang Xiang wasn't paying attention to anything that had just been said, regressing to a safe place in her mind. It was impossible to tell what she was thinking about with her expression impassive and set so rigidly it seemed her face had been carved of stone. Silence prevailed in the room for countless eons. Diao Chan felt like a third wheel just by being there.

Slowly Shang Xiang's eyes came back into focus as if it were a struggle to leave the confines of her mind. But then, Diao Chan reasoned, if she were faced with hiding in a place were she could feel no pain and the real world, she knew which she'd choose.

"What tales would those be?" she finally said, slowly as if not trusting herself to speak.

"In truth there are many rumours of our lord's death spreading about the region but it is in the small, far removed villages were the most bizarre rumours are," Yin Mei stated directly. "The peasantry are saying all sorts of things. They're saying Lord Sun met his end fighting thousands of enemies alone, others say he was taken by demons and only a rational few suggest our lord simply met his end in battle or due to illness."

However for all of Yin Mei's directness even she avoided Shang Xiang's eyes and procrastinated in getting to the point balanced precariously on the tip of her tongue.

"The peasantry are naturally dismayed to hear of our lord's death and will latch themselves to any tale that passes by them. You should understand-"

"What are they saying?" Shang Xiang asked, the interest in her voice somewhat glazed.

"Although most have dismissed the tale as foolish, several gullible people even believe that you and your brother killed him or ordered him to be killed for power."

The revelation, for all its blatant falsity, did have a positive effect according to how one looked at it. After the words had left Yin Mei's mouth Shang Xiang had reacted just as anyone could have expected, with the complete and utter rage that only the grieving are capable of. But at least the rage displaced the unhealthy stoicism and calm persona that Shang Xiang had put up to deal with her grief. The anger was therapeutic.

"That's ridiculous. How could they even- I would never have harmed him!"

"I know you wouldn't," Mei stated, "and I told those fools the same thing. But I didn't know what to believe with rumours and stories flying all over the province."

"So you merely came out of curiosity?" the young lady Sun asked.

"Curiosity is the province of the young. I came because I spoke with your brother during your illness. Despite his youth he had the makings of a great man and had the circumstances been better I would have enjoyed his company more often. As it is I've come to pay my respects and find out the truth." For some reason her eyes slid straight to Diao Chan's for the merest of heartbeat's before moving away again.

She didn't elaborate on what she meant however and after the brief exchange of eye contact beforehand Chan wasn't sure she wanted her to. She no longer felt like a spare part but she was even more uncomfortable now than she had been before. As the safest option she decided to focus on her mistress. Shang Xiang spoke again but her anger had evaporated as quickly as it had come.

"I've heard rumours about you too Mei," she said, her voice now laced with a calm curiosity. "I'd like to know if they're true."

The woman said nothing and Shang Xiang continued.

"I've heard people who I know have level heads on their shoulders say that you're a sorceress. Some say you saved my life before through some sort of magic…" She left the sentence to hang in the air before speaking again. "Whether that's right or wrong though the majority of people seem to think you have some sort of supernatural abilities, even abilities to wake the dead."

"I can't wake the dead," Yin Mei told her with a note of sheer finality.

"_You_ can't?"

For the first time in the conversation the older woman was taken off guard and it showed. She tied invisible knots with her fingers and looked to the mahogany table which served as the only barrier between her and Shang Xiang.

"Not even Hua Tao can bring back those who have ascended to the heavens. But I have heard other tales, queer tales, tales of impossible things. You'd do well not to dwell on them."

"If they're just stories surely there's no harm in telling them."

Yin Mei's back was to the wall and they all knew it. The aged woman sighed aloud and again her straightforward manner asserted itself. "It is hardly appropriate given the timing but I've heard that in the lands beyond the sea there are believed to be treasures of immeasurable strength. Among them is a secretion which is called the Drops of the Fountain." When neither of the listening women made a move or comment she continued. "To a person's eyes it looks simply like water but it has great power."

She seemed reluctant to say more but Shang Xiang urged her on regardless.

"The Drops of the Fountain can give life to the dead it touches and equally take life from the living if a person is foolish enough or deceived into drinking it."

Shang Xiang leaned forward so her elbows rested on the far edge of the table and her face was less than a foot from the old healer's.

"Where are these drops found?"

Before Yin Mei answered though Diao Chan spoke for the first time since the conversation had begun, much to everyone's surprise, including her own.

"You can't be serious," Diao Chan blurted out before she realized what she was saying and who she was saying it to. But the damage had been dealt and she felt the need to continue. "Forgive me mistress but you are being ridiculous. These are tales told to impress children and give hope to the foolish. No hope can be found in them. This woman has already told you it is just a story so why cling to it? I know what it is to lose someone and I know what pain it causes but giving into whims like this will only cause you more agony."

Shang Xiang didn't stand this time but remained seated. The anger Chan had been expecting wasn't there either. She had been taken over by a fury so cold it felt as if the temperature in the room had dropped dramatically. It took a moment for the lady Sun to say anything, so angry she was rendered inarticulate, before giving her order. "Leave me."

"Mistress Sun, I meant no offence. I-"

Shang Xiang didn't appear in any mood to listen though. Tears glistened unshed in her eyes as she pointed to the door. "Leave me, both of you."

Yin Mei had stood by this point.

"Mistress Sun, if I may-"

"Leave me now!" she yelled.

Diao Chan grabbed Yin Mei by the upper arm and led her to the door as her mistress' tears began to flow unabated. Chan quickly closed the door behind her but not before witnessing Shang Xiang start to shake with sobs and press her clenched fists against her eyes.

The moment the door closed though Chan rounded on the aged healer.

"Just what on earth did you think you were doing telling Lady Sun such things? She has just lost her brother. Do you really think she needs to hear about such things now of all times. Have you taken complete leave of your sanity?"

Yin Mei blinked and her face became devoid of expression. "Do you think I'd tell her such a tale if there was no truth in it at all? Or if it wasn't meant to help her?"

"You mean to tell me that every word you uttered in there was true?" Diao Chan scoffed. "Next you'll be telling me you're the Queen of the Eastern Isles."

"I might be but how would you know you ignorant little child?" and still her voice rang without any emotion behind it. If anything it made her words cut deeper. "Clearly the tales of your beauty weren't exaggerated but I wonder if you have been… overrated in the tales told about you, just as you said. But then I suppose it must be difficult for you to trust anything you are told, having spoke in nothing but lies for so long."

"How dare you? I may have lied but I did so for the good of the people. What reason do you have to speak in falsities?"

Chan's words had been heartfelt but the old woman brushed them off as if they were insults from a child.

"You simply don't understand. But I will say this. You are a foreigner to this land yet you presume to be so wise as to gauge the truth and falseness of people you've never even met. I pity you and your inability to take a leap of faith and believe a person when they try and answer questions truthfully. If you presume to act as a queen around those you should be kneeling to then I shouldn't be surprised to see you ejected from your position within weeks."

Diao Chan had nothing to say to that and in that moment she knew she had lost. The weight of the old woman's words had left her reeling and they both knew it. To her credit though Yin Mei stopped there, her battle of words already won.

"I shall attend on my lady Sun again if she calls for me but I have no more time for you I'm afraid," Yin Mei concluded. "I have far better things to be doing with my time. I just pray you learn from what you've heard from me today." With those words she turned away.

_You simply don't understand_ The words reverberated around the inside of Diao Chan's skull as the woman turned her back on her and retreated down the corridor.

_You simply don't understand_ The insufferable old woman was half way down the corridor now and still Chan couldn't repress the echo in her mind, despite the fact the speaker was clearly an impressionable old crone. But still.

_You simply don't understand_ The woman was about to disappear around the far corner of the corridor.

'_Understand what exactly?__'_ Chan thought to herself as Yin Mei disappeared from sight.

Chan didn't need to press her ear to the door or knock to know that her mistress didn't want to see her. If she wanted Chan all she needed to do was order her to come. She decided to leave the corridor entirely to go do the work that she needed to do. But as she made her way down the corridor in the opposite direction than the woman had gone Chan remembered what she had told her. And on consideration she was still a foreigner after all. If she wanted to survive in Jiang Dong kneeling and subservience could only help her, as would taking advice to heart.

If she didn't learn from her mistakes, they would cost her.

_Author's Note:_ My apologies for the tardiness of this chapter. It's been sitting on my computer for six months but it was sinply so bad I couldn't even bring myself to edit it. Well it's been edited now and here is the result. But the next chapter should by up much sooner than this one, seeing as how it too was written six months ago. My thanks to everyone who has reviewed so far and if you think this chapter is crap don't hesitate to put it in a review. I'll agree wholeheartedly with you.


	9. The Vows and the Threat

Chapter 8 – The Vows and the Threat

Despite how upset she was Shang Xiang would have had to be deaf not to hear at least some of the argument as it raged outside her door. She entertained the notion of going out and scolding them further for their impertinence, but thought better of it when she considered her current state. By the time the argument was over and all was still in the corridor outside, Shang Xiang's tears had long since dried but she didn't move. Minor thoughts of vanity crossed her mind before passing on their way as more important matters took to the stage. She wondered how their argument had ended…

Whether they had reconciled or not though, Shang Xiang wasn't so quick to forgive her bodyguard. The woman was one of the few people she could count on as a friend and an equal and that made the insult all the more stinging. The fact that the woman had the outright nerve to address her in such a manner was staggering. Ordinarily she would have tolerated or even welcomed her bodyguard's opinion but in this instance she was uncompromising. It had not been a fair blow.

Had Diao Chan simply condemned the other woman for telling the story it would have been a transgression easy to forgive. But when she presumed that Shang Xiang didn't know what it was like to feel the pain that death caused there was little room for forgiveness. She had lost her father, her brother and her mother had been left so hollow and empty after this latest knock that Shang Xiang sometimes felt like she was an orphan. She knew all about pain. He was a regular visitor in her life.

That was why she didn't receive Diao Chan into her presence that day or on the day after that. As time continued to pass, a part of her felt a leaning towards forgiveness, a feeling which surprised her. Had it been anyone else, barring family members, she probably would never have spoken to them again (and probably give them an injury as a means of thanks). Yet on reflection, despite how little time had passed, she felt a curious bond with the woman from the north. Chan wasn't afraid to speak her mind or fight for what she believed in. In fact she was one of only two women who had ever managed to equal her in combat, a fact Shang Xiang wondered if her servant knew about.

But despite this, her crime was one that wasn't easy to forgive. However Shang Xiang hadn't simply kept to her chambers after the argument and had seen Chan half a dozen times over those days. Every time the part of her urging forgiveness encouraged her to talk but every time Shang Xiang refrained. However she was often spared a decision. Wisely Diao Chan didn't try to approach her and often left on business, whether it was real or fictional, the moment that her superior materialized. At least she understood she was out of favour.

However on the third day Shang Xiang was suitably calmer and her leanings towards forgiveness grew ever stronger, though she sustained enough free will not to make that move. This occurred again on the fourth day but by the fifth day trying to summon the dredges of her willpower was like trying to get water out of a dry well in a drought. She sent the two ladies in waiting standing outside her door on guard in opposite directions with the same summons. A small part of her still felt insulted by the northern woman but if she didn't talk to her soon they might as well send her away. In that moment it occurred to her that she didn't like that possibility. Eventually a gentle knocking on the door announced the return of her serving women.

The door opened in harmony with Shang Xiang's voice. Diao Chan stood alone in the door frame, her somewhat hesitant and nervous expression in stark contrast to the vibrant colours of the battle dress of the Sun ladies in waiting. For once had her sword girded to her side, a habit which was most unlike her. That alone almost made Shang Xiang smile. For a moment she though Chan had the haunted look of a soldier about to make a suicide charge with no way out of their fate. A blink of an eye later though she had dispelled the expression and replaced it with one of false confidence. Chan was quick to drop to one knee and hide her face by looking at the ground rather than at her.

"I'm sorry my lady," she said, before even allowing Shang Xiang to open her mouth. "The presumptions I made about you were inexcusable. I meant only to act with your best interests at heart but went about it in the wrong way. If it pleases my lady I shall leave Jian Ye and serve elsewhere in Jiang Dong."

Shang Xiang felt the pang of dread she'd felt before as Chan finished speaking. She didn't like that option and hearing it come out of Diao Chan's mouth made it even worse.

"Stand up Diao Chan."

She complied without hesitation though she still held her head down.

"It wouldn't please me for you to leave the city. Do you know why?" Shang Xiang asked calmly. Chan shook her head at this. "I want you to stay because I don't want you to leave."

"…That isn't a proper reason my lady."

Shang Xiang couldn't help but laugh at that. The sound was startling to her ears. She hadn't had much cause to laugh for so long that she had almost forgotten how to do so. But it came back to her as naturally as knowing how to breathe. It was something you never really forgot.

"I guess not," she replied after a few moments of laughter. "It made sense in my mind. But the point is still the same."

"You… don't want me to leave?" Chan replied slowly in disbelief, only now looking up.

Shang Xiang couldn't prevent the sigh from escaping her lips. Actions speak louder than words, that's what her father had always said when she was young. It was time to see if he was right. Barely giving it any thought, she reached forward and grabbed Diao Chan around the waist. Whatever the other woman had been expecting it clearly hadn't been that, but then again Shang Xiang hadn't really expected it either. The bodyguard tensed in Shang Xiang's arms for a moment before hesitantly relaxing. Chan clearly felt reluctant to return the gesture, her arms making only the barest contact with her. Shang Xiang didn't take it as an insult though. Perhaps she just didn't like the physical contact. Previously, she had noticed before that Chan was taller than her by about two inches, but now they were standing face to face at perfect eye level. She was probably slouching.

"Does that convince you?" Shang Xiang questioned after releasing the other woman.

In answer Chan gave a simple nod.

"I don't make a habit of embracing my servants," Shang Xiang continued, "but I have no problems with embracing my friends… on occasion. You're my friend whether you like it or not. You made a mistake and I forgive you for it. I don't think I can say anymore than what Yin Mei told you."

"You heard that then?"

"Parts of it, but not everything. So there, you are forgiven."

"Thank you my lady."

"Stop that. Here, with just the two of us, I'm not your lady. I'm your friend and will be addressed as such," she stated, the authority in her voice unmistakably amused. "You can call me Shang Xiang when we're like this. If it makes you feel better that's an order."

The other woman appeared taken aback by this, but quickly suppressed it. "And you can call me Chan when we're like this, my l– Shang Xiang. Or Sable, like my father did."

"Two names, how shall I remember them all?" Neither of them said anything but it was clear that the tension in the air was all but gone. She released Chan at that moment and gestured for her to sit with her. "How is the Maidensguard coming along? Would you like some tea?"

"Yes thank you," the bodyguard replied, taking the small cup from Shang Xiang's hands. "There're seven of us, including myself. The last test was yesterday."

"Which involved?" she asked casually, now gently sipping her own tea.

"We fought against twenty of your best ladies in waiting." Shang Xiang clearly hadn't succeeded in keeping the surprise from her face judging by the sly smile on Diao Chan's. Or maybe she was just imagining it to be sly. Either way Chan continued on. "We prevailed but it was a close run thing. Our advantage was in the diversity of our unit. Some of the women were clearly born to act as swords while the others were born to be shields."

"And what are you Chan? A sword or a shield?"

Her First Sword only answered by sipping at the scalding hot tea. Shang Xiang had to ask her again before she finally answered. "Whatever the situation requires. I try to be what I am needed to be."

"I wish I could have seen the battle for myself. I suppose I'll just have to wait until the next war. Which women did you choose?"

"You'll see soon enough. They want to swear their swords to you again not as ladies in waiting but as Swords of the Maidensguard as soon as possible." She didn't appear to have finished talking though. There was something more she wanted to say, though if it was trouble with the words or worry of their effect, Shang Xiang couldn't tell. Instead she sipped on her tea again' giving her a brief pause before saying "I'll bring them to you as it pleases you my-," still not familiar with the informality. She stood up as if to leave but slowly swayed on the spot.

"There is one more thing," Chan continued. "I don't think I'm qualified enough to act as First Sword of the Maidenguard. I want the position to go to someone more deserving."

"You can't," Shang Xiang said, surprise using her as a mouthpiece. "My brother appointed you. You can't just leave."

"Your brother made me your bodyguard," Diao Chan stated. It amazed Shang Xiang how she managed to remain serene to things around her almost all the time. "I just do not wish to lead your bodyguards. Shang Xiang, remember that your brother made me an officer of the Wu army too. I have obligations to them as much as to you. I _can't_ be your First Sword, even if I wanted to."

"I see," Shang Xiang replied. "Okay I'll do you're a deal. I'll give your position to one of the others if you answer me one question." Diao Chan nodded. Shang Xiang didn't need long to think what to ask. "If one day you must choose between your duty to the army and your duty to me which will you choose?"

Diao Chan's answer was instantaneous. "I would choose you of course, my lady."

Shang Xiang felt doubt but left it unsaid. Only time would gauge whether these doubts were well founded or not.

"I'm glad to hear it," Shang Xiang said, not at all sure if her own words were convincing. If they weren't, Diao Chan showed no sign of noticing. "Right then, let's see who you've chosen for our illustrious Maidensguard."

As they left, Shang Xiang thought that her father had been right after all. Actions did speak louder.

000000

Shang Xiang had been left to wait at the private sparing grounds within the mansion that was reserved solely for use by the Sun family and senior officers of the army. Diao Chan had gone off hunting for the new recruits. No-one else was on the grounds and the mansion itself seemed quieter than usual. However she ignored the silence and passed the time pacing around the grounds. Her footsteps made faint echoes off the polished floor of the sparing grounds; the only such grounds in the city to be floored with stone.

The sun moved slowly across the sky on its way west. Shang Xiang's pacing gradually became less of a distraction and more of an annoyance. The Sun family was as famed for its impatience as it was for its prowess in battle and both were traits the lady Sun had inherited. Everyone had their faults but her lack of patience was a difficult one to bear with.

Her thoughts wandered back to how Diao Chan had portrayed herself during their earlier conversation. Patience was certainly one of her strong suites and, coupled with courtesy, it was much a part of her as her sword arm. Some of her ladies in waiting were the same but the subtle difference was that _their_ ladylike behaviour existed only in her presence. She knew that at least one of her ladies was a notorious drinker when not on duty and enjoyed challenging men twice her size to drinking contests, winning as often as she lost. It hadn't escaped her notice either that one or two of her ladies were very generous in giving men invitations to their chambers. But Diao Chan was neither of these. If nothing else Diao Chan was genuine in her self portrayal.

'_Ironic considering how she toppled an entire regime with lies. Can a person be genuine _and_ deceitful by nature?'_

Whatever the answer, she damned the woman for making her wait. The wind howled but she was shielded from the worst of it by the bamboo walls and the canopy above which fenced her in. Wind was of no matter though. In fact she rather liked it. It was as swift as she was, once in the midst of battle frenzy, and when the battle ended the wind was all that was there to remind her of where she belonged. It served as a reminder that she wasn't as other women were, a fact she was thankful for every day.

Every so often Shang Xiang made for one of the openings in the fence before remembering she didn't know who specifically to look for. The only one she knew of with any certainty was Diao Chan and she was probably somewhere on the other side of the mansion by now. If she left the time already spent waiting would be more wasted than it already was. Grudgingly she always settled back into her pacing.

Fortunately she wasn't left waiting for much longer. Eventually Diao Chan marched through the opening in the bamboo wall and behind her all six women, each armed with a sword, followed after. Shang Xiang recognized all of them on sight but how could she not? She knew all her servants by name and face whether they had served her for ten weeks or ten years.

They all stood in a single line as straight as an arrow, a line so straight that Shang Xiang was surprised. Normally, when gathered together, they stood in disarray in a sorry attempt at formation. Though she didn't want the position of First Sword, Diao Chan still stood at the far end of the line, slightly detached from the rest of them. She hadn't resigned the position yet so it was her duty to speak for the unit.

"My lady, these are the six I think have the greatest ability to protect you from any enemy that should be foolish enough to attack you." A small titter of laughter followed her statement. "They all want to swear themselves to you before becoming Swords of the Maidensguard."

Chan made a gesture and the person standing furthest to the left in the file approached. Shang Xiang knew her at once to be Hua Cai. There wasn't a woman in her retinue who appear as innocent to the world as she did. She was small, the top of her head only just reaching everyone else's shoulders, and her waist seemed narrow enough for two hands to circle it and meet on the other side. She always smiled and when she did her watery eyes smiled too. It was very difficult not to be gladdened at the sight of her. But that smile had also beguiled many young men if rumour was to be believed.

Shang Xiang returned the smile she was given. Like everyone else she had a short dagger in a sheath at the waist but it was the glistening sword, the weapon of every lady in waiting, that she held in her right hand which attracted attention.

"You gave me this sword when I came into your service so I could protect and fight for you. I shall use it to cut down anyone who would try to threaten you… that is if you want me to serve," she finished uncertainly.

"There's no question about that. I know Diao Chan made a fine choice in choosing you."

The next, as Shang Xiang might have predicted, was Cai's sister, Hua Lei. Usually wherever one sister went, the other followed. They shared several physical traits but Lei didn't make as much use of them. Her face was set solidly and without a smile as was often her way. She didn't look nearly halfway as innocent as her sister which was one of life's paradoxes. Where her sister was innocent yet rumoured for rolling with men under covers, Hua Lei was renowned for scaring them off.

The empty sword scabbard set at her waist appeared as a spare part. She almost cradled the sword in her arms as if it was a baby. As well as feeling a twinge of pride at the sight, Shang Xiang mockingly wondered if she slept with the weapon by her side. Either way though, reverence for the blade was reverence for her, which was flattering to say the least.

"I fear my sister's misguided. If there's anyone who wants to harm you my sword will find them before she can even draw her blade."

"Then I'll be sure to keep you both close to me at all times," Shang Xiang told her. When Lei moved back to join her sister Shang Xiang couldn't help but think that despite their fundamental differences she'd never seen a stronger bond between siblings aside from her own. A mental image of her deceased brother came to mind unbidden yet surprisingly the pain was numb. She had always loved her younger brothers despite their quirks. She just hoped that neither of these sisters would have to bear such pain for a long time.

Hei Xin was the next to come forward, loosely holding the hilt of her sword with her hand while the flat of the blade rested on her shoulder. Of all the Swords she was the eldest, already old enough to pass as Shang Xiang's mother, and the strongest. She was also the woman Shang Xiang knew best of all seven, since it had been her who urged Sun Jian to indulge his daughter in the fighting arts while he was still waiting for a male heir. It didn't surprise Shang Xiang in the least that she was one of those chosen.

Though her dark brown hair was lining with streaks of grey and her face was already well into the wrinkling process, both served to make her stern in her appearance. So did the long scar on her right cheek which had been Shang Xiang's doing at the age of ten with her first real sword. It was only by chance that Shang Xiang hadn't taken her head off but Hei Xin had never borne any grudge for it. Oddly though, Hei Xin bore the scar proudly.

She was a head taller than her young mistress but that didn't stop her from looking up to her. Before she said anything to her though, Xin placed her sword down gently on the floor at her feet. It was a gesture quite unlike the ones the sisters had offered.

"My sword is yours as it always has been. I'm proud to be given this chance to fight side by side with you, my dear tigress of Jiang Dong."

Even after all these years, and despite the fact that she was twenty five years old, Hei Xin still spoke to Shang Xiang as if she was ten. Some things were never likely to change. "And I hope I meet your expectations."

"I doubt you'll have any trouble," she said before picking up her sword and moving aside to allow the next woman to come forward.

The next woman was Fan Ying, a woman plain to look on but with a coldness in fighting unique and unparalleled. She was as fierce and aggressive as they came and her frigid fury was something both amazing and terrifying to behold. She was also unique among the seven women as she was the only one who had married. Though there was no law baring them from marriage, some preferred to take Hua Cai's route while others took their position too seriously to be bothering with love.

As all the others had, Fan Ying held her sword in her hand to receive Shang Xiang's instruction and it appeared that it was the only weapon she carried. Shang Xiang knew better though. Concealed about her person Ying had an undetermined number of flat knives for throwing. Of the very few people who knew about the weapons, none of them knew how many she carried. Some said as few as three while others guessed as many as nine but either way they were there, hidden. It was no wonder Fan Ying was often perceived at best as eccentric and at worst as paranoid.

Ying went down to one knee in front of her and offered the hilt of her sword but unlike the others she offered no words. It fell to Shang Xiang to initiate a dialogue. She touched the hilt of the offered blade with one hand and the woman's shoulder with the other.

"I hope you continue to serve me as well as you have before."

"I shall serve you better than before," Ying stated, her voice on the very outer reaches of femininity. "I'm your sword as long as you want me." She stood without flourish and made way for the next person.

Lu Mi was the penultimate woman in the line to come forward to join the Maidensguard. Like Hua Lei she was either scorned or feared by the majority of the men who came to the mansion but at least in this case it was justified. Mi was loyal to the brink of utter fanaticism and had been for eight years since Shang Xiang had found her and raised her to her position. She was so grateful that she showed about as much interest in men as they did in her.

Mi was also so similar to Fan Ying that they might have been sisters separated at birth. She was quiet, she was dutiful, she was plain but above all she fought fiercely but with an assassin's cunning and precision. It had been that very skill which had outraged Sun Jian when he heard she had been made a lady in waiting, for he was nothing if not a caring and worried father. The corners of her mouth perked a little thinking about Sun Jian. She missed him terribly sometimes. How long had it been now? Two years? Three? She'd lost count somewhere along the line.

The naked blade of the sword lay in her hands, one hand on the hilt and the other under the flat of the blade. Like Fan Ying before her, she knelt in front of Shang Xiang but this time she knelt on both knees, placed the blade at her feet and bowed her head low enough to brush her lips across her mistress' toes.

"Only death will serve as an honour great enough for my lady. I shall bring you the heads of your vanquished foes or die in the attempt. I will bring even the emperor himself to his knees to see your greatness."

The words would've been startling if Shang Xiang hadn't already known the extent of her devotion. A chance glance at Diao Chan however revealed that she'd obviously selected something more than she bargained for. Shang Xiang recalled that the other woman had been a friend of the emperor once when she was in the north. Inadvertently that made her doubt her companion again. If pushed to a choice, she wondered if Chan would choose the emperor over her. The northern woman was full of questionable loyalties. But she decided to trust her even if all she was really doing was ignoring her nagging worries.

Returning back to the matter at hand Shang Xiang crouched and raised the woman by her shoulders so their eyes were level.

"You do me an honour by choosing to serve me but don't talk of the emperor in such a way. We are still his loyal servants." _For now_, she added in her mind but it wouldn't have served to make Diao Chan any happier to say those words aloud. She picked up the sword and placed it back in Lu Mi's hands. "Use this to serve him as much as you use it to serve me."

"I will my lady."

It was almost dismay that Shang Xiang felt when she clapped eyes on the sixth woman. She was her very own cousin, born from her father's brother Sun Jing, and her name was Sun Dai. She was younger than Shang Xiang by about three years and had received the same training with the sword from Hei Xin. When she was younger Sun Dai had been her cousin's shadow and had wanted to be as she was. She liked her cousin sometimes but the reputation that she was forging in the mansion was enough to put severe strain on Shang Xiang's regard for her.

Shang Xiang was spared from taking her sword however by the sound of hastened footsteps hitting the stone behind her. A page was running in her direction and it took a few moments more before she realized the boy was heading directly for her. When he stopped, he doubled over out of breath. Clearly Diao Chan hadn't been the only person who'd had difficulty finding someone in the massive mansion.

"My lady Sun," he wheezed out eventually, "you are… wanted in the… audience chamber. Lord Sun… he urges you to come quickly."

"Alright, I'm coming," Shang Xiang told him.

"If I might come with you also my lady," Sun Dai called from behind her. "A Sword must be seen to guard her mistress."

'_Fine__ then let's see your shadowing skills. You've had years enough to practice them.'_

She wouldn't show up her cousin in front of her fellow Swords though, no matter how much she had come to disapprove of her, "Whatever you want."

She turned back to the page and despite knowing her home better than anyone she urged him to lead the way with an impending sense of dread.

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The audience chamber was virtually devoid of people by the time Shang Xiang arrived. The Throne of the Suns had been left vacant but her brother stood by one of the windows facing the north on the far side of the chamber. He was holding a conversation with one of his councillors but from such a distance it was difficult to identify him and impossible to hear their conversation. It didn't appear to be a hot-blooded talk. There was no frantic arm waving nor were there any voices raised in anger. That wasn't a good sign.

Although she wasn't the smartest of women it wasn't difficult to guess why Shang Xiang had been summoned. The urgent matter was almost certainly going to concern her betrothal despite her opposition to the very idea. Bearing that in mind she hesitated in the doorway and considered turning around and leaving again unseen. Both men had failed to hear her enter and their backs were to her.

She probably would have managed an escape too if it hadn't been for her insufferable cousin.

"My lord cousin," Sun Dai yelled out across the room. That well attracted their attention quick enough and dashed her hopes of escape to pieces like a ship against rocks in a storm. "Here is your sister as you asked."

Shang Xiang had a mind to put the bloody woman in her place but contented herself with giving her a look of contempt. Sun Dai made a show of careful ignorance and pretended not to notice. It was a manoeuvre carefully cultivated. Sun Dai had a habit of betrayal after all.

Why on earth had she agreed to bring her cousin with her? It was too late to be regretting that decision now though so Shang Xiang walked slowly towards her doom. Her footfalls echoed off the marble floor as she walked, making her feel small in the big room, as if to add to her anxieties.

Each step was as heavy as the last but that didn't stop her from crossing the room as quickly as she would normally. Shang Xiang resented herself for that. A few more moments before the snare sprang would have been welcome.

Sun Quan had already seated himself again in the Throne and the councillor, who she now recognized as Zhang Zhao, stood beside him on the dais. In that instant Shang Xiang knew why she had been summoned to the chamber with nothing but certainty. Zhang Zhao had been the one to suggest the betrothal in the first place.

Shang Xiang tried to keep her expression level but she'd never been good at keeping her emotions veiled. The discontent leaked through the cracks of her improvised façade and it must have showed. Rather than address her immediately Sun Quan instead looked to Sun Dai.

"Why are you here cousin?" he asked

"That's none of your concern, _my lord_," Shang Xiang told him before Sun Dai could even open her mouth, "not for much longer anyway. Sun Dai, leave."

"But you said I-"

"That was when I assumed this would be a meeting of officers. This is private."

"You'll let me stay won't you cousin?" she asked, this time addressing Sun Quan. The damn woman knew them too well. When displeased neither brother nor sister would be receptive to a person's requests. Shang Xiang was displeased at the moment but her brother was not and as of yet had no cause to be.

"You may as well. What we'll discuss will soon be common knowledge anyway." Quan answered. Shang Xiang cursed him silently. Sun Dai wasn't renowned for keeping secrets but she was for extracting them, and even more so for spilling them. Sun Quan couldn't have chosen a better conduit to make the news public if he tried. "We've opened the lines of communication with Cai Mao and he has expressed his wishes to meet you."

"Who are 'we', brother?"

"I was the one who sent the message," Zhang Zhao put forward, "and persuaded Lord Cai to consider the proposal."

"So I have no say in the matter. Is that it?"

"We're not expecting you to marry him straight away," Quan said. "We want you just to meet with him."

"I don't want to meet him," Shang Xiang replied.

"You have no choice in that," Quan told her, his voice suddenly commanding. "He's coming from Jing as we speak and should be here within the week. You will meet with him and you must marry him for the good of our country."

"Come on cousin," Sun Dai put in. "It's every girl's dream to marry a handsome knight or a powerful lord."

"Then you marry him. You've got just as much Sun blood in your veins as I have."

"I'm not the one being betrothed."

"Shut up then," Shang Xiang snapped at her. "This doesn't concern you." She turned back to her brother. "I'll meet him if you want but I won't marry him for power or gold."

Sun Quan looked at her suspiciously and Shang Xiang realized her mistake. She'd given a concession and that was dangerous. Quan eyed her oddly for a moment but decided not to mention it. "How about for love?" he asked in a tone that demanded an answer.

"How old are you? Twelve? We both know there's no love involved here. But go on, find someone who still believes in marrying for love then. Preferably someone who looks like me so Lord Cai isn't too disappointed. Try this one for starters," she said, gesturing to Sun Dai with a pointed finger. "I'm sure Lord Cai wouldn't complain when she puts her talents to use in his service."

Quan looked affronted while Dai had the good grace to blush. Shang Xiang, happy now that she'd expressed her will, turned to leave but didn't get far before her lordly little brother caught up to her.

"One day you are going to ask too much of me or push me too far. It's bad enough that father actually allowed you to train with weapons and let you grow up believing you were a man. But I will not be denied. You'll give him your hand whether you like it or not."

"The only way he'll get my hand is if you cut it off. But you'd have to kill me to do that." Shang Xiang replied bluntly. "Call me naïve but I think Cai Mao may be offended by the notion of marrying a one-armed corpse."

"Even if I have to force you every step of the way by the point of a sword then by god I will do it," he told her. "Don't push me too far or you'll regret it."

"What have you done with my brother, my lord? You aren't the boy I knew."

"I'm not a boy anymore," he said. "You will marry, sister, I promise you that. Whether you want to or not." With that he turned away, back to his adviser, satisfied that he'd had the last word.

As Shang Xiang walked out she began to experience a feeling akin to terror at the prospect. It wasn't because of the fact that her brother had treated her roughly, nor was it because she feared the marriage. It wasn't even because she was terrified by the possibility of a life of subservience to a husband who would only use her as a tool. No, none of those things terrified her.

The terrifying thing was that she believed his every word.

_Author Note:_ There, I said it wouldn't take another six months to post this. Anyway I hope you're pleased with the results and I appreciate the reviews I was given for the last chapter. I've noticed a trend that my chapters are gradually get slightly longer with each new one. Well if this bothers anyone, you'll be pleased to here the next chapter isn't this long and should be up with a month.

Well anyway, thanks for the reviews and whatnot.


	10. A Walk in the Rain

Chapter 9 – A Walk in the Rain

As she watched Shang Xiang walk away to the audience chamber, Diao Chan felt a sense that she couldn't describe in words. She felt certain she knew why her superior had been called away and though she personally supported the ideals of marriage, even if for political gain, in this case she wasn't so sure. Something about it just didn't sit right with her. As it became clear that Shang wasn't returning, the newly formed Maidensguard dispersed from the sparing grounds one by one to do whatever it was they had in mind. Eventually Chan was left alone with Hei Xin. They shared a purposeful, silent look and for the slightest of moments Chan felt an affinity with her before they both turned away.

With no pressing duties to attend to, Diao Chan decided that she would go back to her chambers and rest. Her room was in the servant's wing though close to the centre of the mansion and the wing where the Sun family and their most senior officers stayed on occasion. It was only a short walk away from the sparing grounds. When she passed through the door from the sparing ground to the corridor, she turned left towards the main entrance. As she walked through the corridors Chan passed several people, recognising several of them by sight if not by name. She smiled or nodded to the ones she recognised, ignoring and being ignored by the rest. The walk itself was fairly pleasant until she reached the final turn to the hall where her room was.

For a second, Chan saw a whitish red blur coming towards her before being knocked backwards a step. Unsure and confused by what had happened she looked around to find what had hit her. A sudden noise attracted her attention to the floor. It was a person.

"Owwie," she bawled. Though Chan had managed to stay on her feet, the other, smaller woman had fallen over onto her backside. Fortunately though, the girl didn't look too badly hurt by the unexpected collision. Apologetically the bodyguard offered her a helping hand back onto her feet.

She took it and Chan hefted her back onto her feet with barely any effort at all. The woman weighed about as much as a child, and she looked one too.

"Hey, watch where you're walking," the little woman said, dusting herself off and smoothing down her outfit with her hands. "That hurt, you know."

Shock prevented Chan from registering what she'd just heard. Was the girl blaming her? She was hardly prepared to stand for that. She opened her mouth but bit back the retort she'd been about to say. It wasn't worth getting worked up over. It had only been an accident and could have happened to anyone. Besides the other woman was tiny, her head barely reaching Diao Chan's shoulder, and looked as though she would burst into tears at any moment.

"My apologies," Chan said as pleasantly as she could. "But you shouldn't run in the corridors or this sort of thing will happen."

Surprisingly, the other person flared like a peacock in a show of anger, leaving Diao Chan quite bemused. All she'd done was offer some friendly advice.

"You better watch what you're saying," she replied. She tried to make herself look imposing by making herself as tall as possible and standing with her hands on her hips. Even so she was still the shorter of the two. In fact, the effect was hilarious and though she tried hard Chan couldn't help herself. She burst into a fit of laughter.

"Don't laugh at me," she said, raising her voice but only managing to amuse Chan further. "Don't you know who I am?"

Chan waited until she managed to control her laughter before answering. "I don't know. Some 14 year old officer's daughter?"

The girl looked so taken aback by the answer and that almost made Chan cry tears of laughter, but she just managed to control herself… barely.

"Hey, I'm 19 years old. Really!" she added when she saw Chan's incredulous expression. "I'm Xiao Qiao, wife of the great strategist Zhou Yu."

Diao Chan imagined the girl adding the words, "Fear me," onto the end of that sentence, as that was obviously the effect she wanted to see. Fear. Unfortunately the girl was hindered by the fact that she couldn't possibly scare a child.

"Well as we're introducing ourselves, I'm Diao Chan, bodyguard to Lady Sun Shang Xiang," she said politely, but she couldn't resist adding, "And I'm 27 years old."

The girl didn't appear to pick up on the insult though. As soon as Chan had mentioned her name, Xiao Qiao's expression and body language immediately changed and became softer. Unexpectedly, Qiao actually grinned at her once she'd finished speaking, all her previous irritation forgotten.

"_You're_ Diao Chan. Well why didn't you say so?!" she asked excitedly, bouncing on the balls of her feet before proceeding to talk at a speed of a million miles per second. "Oooh Shang Xiang's told me lots about you. She said you were her new bodyguard. She said that you were really cool with a sword. Can you teach me? That would be so totally cool! She said you were one of the best guys she's ever fought against. I've wanted to meet you for ages, you know. You sound so cool and you're really pretty."

"Oh, why… thank you," Chan responded, utterly bewildered by the wall of sentences that she'd just run face first into.

"So how come you're here?" the girl asked, mercifully speaking slower and asking only the one question.

"My room's just-"

"No, silly, I meant here in Wu!"

"Oh I see. Well, it's a long story."

"That's okay, we have loads of time," Xiao Qiao said as she grabbed the older woman's hand. "Come on, my sister wants to meet you too. Then you can tell us your story!"

As Diao Chan was dragged away by the arm, she paid a wistful, parting glance to the wooden door of her bedroom. All she'd wanted was to spend a quiet afternoon alone. Now she was in the company of the most excitable woman in Jiang Dong. Quietly, she sighed in frustration, but reasoned that at least there was one consolation.

This sister couldn't be any worse than Xiao Qiao.

Could she?

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Diao Chan and the rest of the Maidensguard were given permission to do what they wanted to whilst Shang was in the mansion. As such Chan spent the next few days productively by honing her fighting skills with Hei Xin, something the older woman was surprisingly interested in helping with. Chan's technique was more than a little sloppy in places, many of her moves being improvised and easily countered. The elder woman had been training for over twenty five years and was able to tactically pick out the weak points in Chan's stance and style fairly easily.

Surprisingly though Chan felt the beginnings of a friendship forming with her, something she hadn't expected. The training might have been disheartening had it not been the Xin's approachability and willingness to teach as opposed to mock. When she wasn't sword fighting, Chan took it upon herself to familiarise herself with the mansion a little more. Though it had been almost a month since she'd arrived, there were still places where she found it easy to get lost.

One sunny morning several days after her meeting with the Qiao sisters, Chan was in her room reading bamboo scrolls she'd been given by one of Sun Quan's servants. It explained the military division of Sun family forces in the province and their tactical abilities. He seemed to have written the scroll himself in a very fluid script and told her that he was pleased with what she'd been doing and that she was very welcome in Wu. At the end of the scroll he'd asked her to look after Shang and try her best to keep her from dangerous situations. She wondered if her lord had meant to be ambiguous or not.

Before she could consider it further a knock on the door startled her. Her head snapped up as though she were a peasant caught in a cavalry charge. A sense of dread rose in her as she stood. She prayed it wasn't who she thought it was. Regardless she went to open the door.

Much to her relief it was Shang Xiang who had been knocking. Chan noticed that the other woman looked bemused by how she was using the door as a shield. That expression only magnified when Chan grabbed her arm and pulled her quickly through the door.

"What are you-" the confused Shang attempted to ask before she was silenced by a gesture from Diao Chan. Briefly checking the corridor, Chan was satisfied that no-one else was there.

She closed and bolted the door behind her. Then that feeling of dread returned for a different reason. She turned to find a semi-raging Shang standing in the middle of her room.

"You're going to hit me aren't you?" Chan enquired in what she hoped was a pleading voice.

"The thought occurred to me. Just what the hell was that for?"

Considering how badly the words "it's a long story" worked last time she used them, Chan settled on explanation.

"I'm avoiding the Qiao sisters."

Shang Xiang's look of indignant disbelief almost instantly dissolved into an understanding grimace.

"Why's that?"

"Well they're very… energetic."

"No, no," Shang Xiang said, waving her hand in dismissal. "What I meant is what did they do? I'm well aware my sisters-in-law can be as irritating as a full body rash."

Chan was surprised by that remark. She hadn't known about their relation and began to wonder if she'd made yet another faux pas.

"They're your sisters-in-law?" she asked cautiously.

"Unfortunately, in a fit of gratitude to their father for offering him shelter one night, my brother decided to marry Da Qiao, Zhou Yu doing the same with Xiao. He was impulsive like that. And you didn't answer my question."

She'd never heard Shang Xiang mention her brother in such a light hearted way since she'd arrived in Jiang Dong. Subconsciously she marked it as a good sign. Just as Chan was about to answer the question however she was cut off.

"Actually tell me in the gardens," Shang said. "That was the reason I came to see you. It's a beautiful day for this time of autumn and there's no sense in staying indoors. Will you join me?"

The invitation surprised Chan quite a little. Shang appeared as a woman whose only aesthetics were in the realm of war craft and only found beauty therein. She'd never heard Shang Xiang say anything so apparently feminine since they first met. It took Chan a few moments to realise that she hadn't yet answered.

"Alright, just as long as there aren't any Qiao's."

"Don't worry about that," Shang Xiang said in a comforting tone which was obviously mocking in nature. "Xiao went up north with Zhou Yu a few days ago and Da _can _be quite agreeable when she's on her own. She usually just sits in her room, doing what who knows? Does that set your mind at ease?"

"Completely."

With that Chan held the door open for Shang Xiang before closing it behind herself. On the way to the gardens she told the other woman about her ordeal with the Qiao sisters, a tale which took an unsurprising long time to tell. She detailed the frequent, interrupting questions she had been asked, the way they squealed or became sad at certain parts of the story and most of all the threat that they had given her just as she made for the door.

"They offered you a makeover?" Shang Xiang exclaimed in surprise. "What on earth for?"

"They said, and I quote, I am 'pretty but a little old and grumpy looking.'"

"No wonder you're hiding from them. If it makes you feel any better I don't think you look old. You're as pretty as the day I met you."

Chan smiled at that. Not at the compliment (though that was pleasant in itself), but at the fact Shang Xiang had just wrong footed herself and they both knew it. Chan had done it so often since arriving that she was glad to see the boot on the other foot.

Slightly embarrassed Shang Xiang said, "I mean that from a strictly objective point of view."

"Of course, Shang Xiang."

Chan smiled and left it at that, just to see what would happen. To her credit, Shang was a lot more graceful in the face of embarrassment than she was. At no point neither had her face changed between angry shades of red, nor had she said anything in a panicked tone. Instead she became quite formal in her demeanour, her talk and walk becoming as stiff as a board.

By this time they had reached the gardens on the southern side of the mansion. Unlike the gardens elsewhere in the mansion, this one was a water garden. Interlinking ponds populated by fish covered the area from the walls at the far end to the mansion itself, with random splotches of green filling in where elsewhere there was blue. Several of the larger ponds had small, timber bridges crossing them. On every bridge people at leisure leaned on the rails and gazed into the waters quite entranced. It was easily the most beautiful part of the mansion.

Shang led her bodyguard on a slow, winding course around the ponds. They walked silently around two of the closest, Chan gazing at the waters and the lilies resting on their surface before it occurred to her to wonder why she was even here. She put the question to her companion and waited. Shang was slow to answer.

They came to a bridge and passed a couple who quickly paid respects to Shang Xiang, only turning back to the fish once they'd been acknowledged. Chan waited for a few minutes more before asking the same question again.

"I want to talk to you," she answered vaguely, but without any hint of emotion.

"Why here? Is it something you want to show me?"

"No. I brought you here because this is a good place to think. I want to ask you something."

"Feel free Shang Xiang."

They continued past another pond before Chan realised that they were walking faster and Shang was walking on a definite course. They came to the next pond besides an orchard, large but not large enough to warrant the need for a bridge. It was here that Shang Xiang settled down and asked her question.

"How did you feel when you were told you were going to marry Lu Bu?"

Chan froze. She hadn't thought about Lu Bu since she'd first come to Wu. That part of her life which happened only a few years ago now felt like it had occurred eons ago. Thinking about him again she found no sadness, no longing, no emotion whatsoever. It was as if those events were a part of a separate existence of which she was only a spectator.

Shang stopped too and had seemed to have jumped to the obvious conclusion that she'd offended her with the question. Before she could say anything Chan shook her head gently and gave an encouraging smile. The words in Shang's mouth died where they stood.

"It's alright. But I never did marry him. There came a time shortly before his death where I would have chosen to marry him… but his wife resented me as it was."

"Well what did think when you were betrothed to Dong Zhuo then?"

Chan paused for a few moments. "Dismay at first. But then I was told in what cause. It wasn't a pleasant experience though even then. Why do you ask?"

Shang Xiang glanced at her before settling herself down with her back to one of the small trees.

"I don't want to marry Mao Cai or whatever his name is. And I have no choice in the matter. If I refuse, my thick headed brother would never let me marry a husband of my own choosing _much_ later in life."

Seeing Shang Xiang's dismay was rather disquieting. She didn't cry, wail, kick or scream as a normal woman might have done if they were in the same situation. She just stared blankly at the tall water reeds at the far end of the pond. The wind rustled its way by them and gently whipped at the two women's clothes and hair. Chan swatted a loose strand of hair from her face.

"Perhaps you should marry this lord," Diao Chan said slowly. Shang Xiang's head snapped up in shock just as she had expected, so she continued to explain. "In time perhaps you may come to tolerate him, though you'll probably never love him. There's value in marrying him and you could marry worse. Much worse."

"Chan I'd sooner never marry at all than marry a person I don't love, or at the very least respect."

"Perhaps if you thought about doing it for your country you'd feel more inclined to marry this lord."

Shang Xiang snorted in incredulity. "Only the lords who own the lands will fight for their country."

"Which is something you could be one day."

Shang Xiang stared at her questioningly.

"In the unlikely event your brother will die before he has children," Chan said, carefully choosing her words, "then you shall become the liege lord of Wu. And if you marry Cai Mao then there will be a firm alliance between Jiang Dong and Jing. Just think how many lives would be saved from being wasted in an avoidable war."

"I hadn't thought about that," Shang Xiang admitted. "But Quan isn't going to die. Besides it's a soldier's duty to die in service to his lord. That's the way it works."

"I wasn't thinking about the soldiers."

"I know but don't forget Liu Biao killed my father. One day there'll probably be a war anyway, marriage or no marriage. If Quan wanted to he could marry off a cousin or something and pretend it's me."

"He could but who would replace you?"

The question was answered by silence.

"Don't get me wrong Shang Xiang. I am sympathetic to what you're going through," Chan said. "I suppose you're going through the same thing I did."

Shang Xiang didn't look up from the water reeds.

"I'll help you get out of it."

Shang Xiang looked at her and for the first time since the conversation began she gave a hopeful smile.

"You will?"

"Yes, it's not pleasant being betrothed to someone you despise."

Shang Xiang stood up and for the second time since they'd met gripped Chan tightly around the waist. Fortunately, the pond was in an isolated part of the gardens nowhere near anyone else. Chan returned the gesture, better used to it than the first time.

"Thank you."

Shang Xiang let her go and still smiling she led Chan back the way they had come.

It began to rain.

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The moment his mother was satisfied that his chores were done, Chen Wang stampeded out of the front door towards the village square. Some of the other children were already there, some racing each other from one end of the square to the other as they waited for everyone else. Wang greeted his friends and joined Li, the girl who lived next door to him who was two years older, a fact she always made sure to emphasise at least once a day.

Some more of the boys challenged each other until finally all the children who were coming had arrived at the square. Wang and Li gathered around Ping, the ringleader of the group, along with the rest.

"What game are we playing today Ping?" one of the more enthusiastic boys asked excitedly.

Ping wondered for a moment before happily stating, "Hide and Seek. Li's the seeker."

"Why do I have to be the seeker?" Li asked indignantly.

"Because I'm older than you and I said so. Everybody hide."

The group dispersed within seconds leaving only Li behind to count with her eyes closed, facing the tree. Wang ran with the rest of the children in a fit of energy before he began to wonder where to hide. Li knew where all his hiding places were so he couldn't use them. He paused and wondered where to go before seeing the answer right in front of him.

The village was built in the lee of a small hill and on top of that there was a large standing stone that few of the other children went near, claiming it to be haunted and that it was bad luck to go near it. He'd never believed the stories though. In moments he was running for the hill and just hoped he got there before any other children thought along the same lines.

When he reached the standing stone he found it alone with no-one hiding behind it. Pleased with his choice of hiding place, Wang was about to sit down on the far side of the stone before he saw something that stopped him in his tracks.

A cloud of dust was rising in the untended fields beyond. He knew it wasn't a sandstorm because it was small and there was only a gentle breeze but at the same time he didn't know what exactly it was. He completely forgot about hiding as he watched the dust cloud gradually draw nearer. When it got closer Wang could see little people on horses in the cloud and got excited. Wang had always dreamed of becoming a soldier when he grew up and here was a group of them coming to their village. This was the first interesting thing to happen in the village for ages.

When the horsemen were just over a hundred paces from the foot of the hill they began to veer off west. Wang shouted and waved at them trying to get their attention. They stopped and then to his delight changed direction and came straight for the hill.

Behind him, Wang heard Li yelling about how bad he was at hiding and how crazy he was for standing near the haunted stone. He gestured frantically for her to come and watch the soldiers.

They were closer now. Wang could make out individual faces. They had no banners and didn't wear soldier uniforms. He heard a strange twanging sound. He saw something fly towards him.

Li screamed.

It began to rain.

_Author Notes:_ I find it a sorry state of affairs that, in my opinion, I wrote Xiao Qiao very in character as she appears in the game. Yes I do despise her, or rather Koei's rendition of her. That they actually made Zhou Yu's wife about twelve years old… there must be some seriously perverted programmers in that company. But never mind.

As promised chapter 9 has (finally) arrived. The editing process was slightly delayed by my new job and the lukewarm reception of the last chapter but that's immaterial. It's here now. As always, my thanks to all readers and reviewers.


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